Distractions
by ACCOUNT HAS BEEN TERMINATED
Summary: SEQUEL TO SIDELINED! Lightning is in his third racing season, but he has a lot on his mind: Sally's demanding wedding plans, Doc's racing expectations, and his old injuries flaring up...will he be able to finally get a Piston Cup under the pressure?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Here is the sequel to Sidelined!! I hope you enjoy it! I will venture to say that I don't like it as much as the original, but I plan to go far with the sequel to this one! (It'll be a while before that one comes around though…Also—I don't know/understand the racing season in Cars, so I kinda made up my own…so yeah….lol**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I really, really, really, really, really, really, REALLY don't own Cars.**

Lightning McQueen drove out of his trailer and into the familiar town on Radiator Springs.

"Thanks, Mack," Lightning said to the huge truck that hauled him all around the country.

"No problem, Boss," Mack replied. "I'll see you in a week."

"Sounds good," Lightning said. He drove down the familiar main street of Radiator Springs and to the hospital where he knew his crew chief, Doc Hudson, would be.

"Hey, Rookie," Doc said, glancing at him when Lightning rolled into the open room. "Did you have a good trip back?"Yeah," Lightning replied. He had just raced in this twentieth race of his third season in the running for the Piston Cup. Lightning had won fifteen races so far.

"Good," Doc said. "Do you want your check-up now or later?"

The year before, Lightning had been in a severe wreck. He had sustained a crushed engine, broken wheel axles, and countless other injuries. It had taken the rest of the season and the off-season for Lightning to heal and get back in shape.

"Later, if possible," Lightning said.

"Are you putting it off to go see Sally?" Doc asked.

Sally Carrera was Lightning's fiancé. She had said yes to Lightning twenty long weeks before when Lightning won his first race of the third season.

"That's a possibility," Lightning said, smiling.

"Get on the examining table," Doc said curtly. "You have a whole week to spend with her."

"Fine," Lightning said, a little surprised at Doc's short-tempered remarks.

"Everything looks okay," Doc said ten minutes later. "You have a little oil build up in your front right axle, but overall you check out okay."

"Thanks, Doc," Lightning said, rolling down off the elevated table.

"You're welcome," Doc said.

"Bye," Lightning said quickly. He left Doc's office. Doc was not acting normally. Lightning did not know what it was that was bothering Doc, but he definitely wanted to find out. He drove down Radiator Spring's main road again and down to the Cozy Cone Motel, Sally's business. All of Radiator Spring's customers stayed at the motel where the rooms were gigantic caution cones.

"Hey," Lightning said, smiling as he entered the office. He had missed Sally terribly.

"Hi!" Sally said excitedly. She drove around her desk and quickly hugged Lightning. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too," Lightning murmured. He kissed Sally, which was something the couple had not been able to do in five months.

"I love you," Sally said softly. "Five months is too long not to see someone you love."

"I know," Lightning said. "But before you know it, it'll be the off-season."

"Good," Sally said. "It's not that I don't want you racing, I just miss you too much."

"I know," Lightning said. "So what have you been up to?"

"Nothing much," Sally said. "We need to plan some things while you're here though."

"Wedding stuff?" Lightning asked.

"Yes," Sally said. "I've done a few things already. I hope you don't mind."

"Don't worry about it," Lightning said. "I'm not good at that stuff anyway. What did you do?"

"I made my part of the guest list," Sally said. "I also found our caterers, our honeymoon spot, the wedding date, and the place we're getting married."

"Oh wow," Lightning said, slightly flustered. "Where are we getting married?"

"L.A!" Sally said, obviously thrilled. "The same place my parents got married!"

"Oh," Lightning said. He had wanted a small wedding in Radiator Springs. "That sounds good."

"I know!" Sally said. "And my guest list has over one hundred people already, so don't leave anyone out."

"Over one hundred people?" Lightning asked faintly. "Wow."

"Yeah," Sally said. "I've wanted a big wedding my whole life!"

"Looks to me like you're getting your big wedding," Lightning said, trying his hardest to sound happy.

"Yeah," Sally agreed. "We're getting married October sixth."

Lightning's tank lurched. That was only three days after the final race of the season. "Oh," he said. "That's really soon. It was already mid-August."

"The sooner the better!" Sally said. "And guess where we're going on our honeymoon?"

"Where?" Lightning asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.

"Mexico!" Sally said. "It's an exclusive resort. The only week open was October seventh through the fourteenth."

"Cool," Lightning said. He actually liked the idea of going to Mexico, but he did not want to go only three days after the Dinoco 400.

"Does that sound good to you?" Sally asked.

"Yeah," Lightning lied, trying to seem happy with the news again.

"Good," Sally said smiling. "It took forever to organize all that."

"Well I'm glad it all worked out," Lightning said in a voice he could only hope was convincing. "Anyway, I'm going to go see Mater. I haven't talked to him in a while."

Mater was an extremely uneducated tow truck who happened to be Lightning's best friend.

"Okay," Sally said. "He's been lonely lately.

Lightning smiled. "He gets that way," he said. "I'll see you later."

"Bye," Sally said.

Lightning backed out of the office and drove down to Mater's towing lot. He saw the truck fast asleep under a tree that had seen better days.

"Mater!"Lightning said. "Wake up!"

Mater slowly opened his eyes. When he saw it was Lightning, he jumped fully awake.

"Hey, Bud!" Mater said. "Yur home!"

"Yeah, I'm home, Mater," Lightning said, almost glumly.

"Well what's wrong, Bud?" Mater asked.

"Nothing really," Lightning replied. "It's just Sally made all these wedding arrangements and none of them work well for me. I think I'm just being too selfish."

"Well what was she doin'?" Mater asked.

"It's nothing that big," Lightning said. "The wedding is only three days after my last race in the season, so I'm already going to be stressed about the race and then I'll be even more stressed about the wedding."

"Well," Mater said, obviously thinking hard, "why don't you just tell Miss Sally how you feel?"

"Because she's so excited about everything," Lightning sighed. "She's worked really hard for all of this, so I can't just say that it won't work. I'll just have to deal with it."

"But then you won't be happy," Mater said slowly.

"I will be once it's all over," Lightning said.

"Well, I still reckon you outta tell Miss Sally," Mater said. "But you do whatever you want, Bud."

"I'll think on it, Mater," Lightning said. "So what have you been up to while I was gone?"

"Well, nothin' much really," drawled Mater. "I went tractor tippin' a couple times, but then Frank got Luigi so I decided to stop for a while."

Frank was the huge combine that guarded the tractors Mater often scared into tipping over backwards.

"Frank got Luigi?" Lightning asked, taking a quick intake of breath. "Is he okay?"

"I reckon so," Mater said. "He just got himself nicked on the bumper. He'll be fine in a week or so I guess."

"Oh," Lightning said, making a mental note to go see Luigi. "Well you be careful, Mater. I don't want you getting hurt."

"Aw, I'm a-okay, Bud," Mater said happily. "I reckon nobody could catch me 'cept you."

Lightning laughed. "Maybe so," he said. "Hey, Mater, I wanted to ask you something."

"Okay, Bud," Mater said. "Fire away."

"Will you be one of my groomsmen at the wedding?" Lightning asked.

"Of course I will!" Mater exclaimed. "I'd be honored ta be in urs and Miss Sally's wedding!"

"Thanks, Mater," Lightning said, grinning. "I appreciate it."

"No problem, Bud," Mater said.

Just then, a bell mounted upon the dead tree started ringing. The sound vibrations caused the tree to sway ominously.

"Oh!" Mater said, obviously startled. "I've gotta go tow someone! I'll see ya later, Bud!"

"Okay, Mater," Lightning said. "I'll see you later."

Once Mater left, Lightning decided to go up to Wheel Well, his racing headquarters. Lightning sped up the steep, scenic incline to Wheel Well. When Lightning got there, he was surprised to see Doc parked at the edge of the cliff that looked upon the beautiful Midwest.

"Hey," Lightning said, driving up and parking beside Doc.

Doc jumped. "Oh, hey, Rookie," he said.

"What are you doing up here?" Lightning asked. "Just enjoying the view?"

Doc shrugged. "You could say that," he said shortly.

"Are you okay?" Lightning asked. "You've been a little distant lately."

Doc shrugged. "I'm fine," he said shortly.

"Well," Lightning sighed. "I wish I could say the same."

"What's wrong, Kid?" Doc asked, turning to face Lightning. "You didn't hurt your wheel axle again, did you?"

"No," Lightning said. "Don't worry, it's nothing like that. It's wedding stuff. Sally's already gone and made all these plans, and she has the wedding scheduled for October sixth."

"Three days after the Dinoco 400?" Doc asked, his voice icing over.

"Yeah," Lightning sighed. "It's definitely not convenient."

"That's an understatement!" Doc said angrily.

"I just don't know what to do," Lightning said.

"I'm not the one to ask," Doc said, backing away from the edge of the cliff and driving away.

Lightning simply stared as Doc sped away. That was very unlike Doc to just leave. Normally, he would lecture Lightning.

After a few minutes pondering, Lightning decided to go into Wheel Well and get some paperwork taken care of. Lightning unlocked the huge structure and drove down the long hallway and into his office. He started signing his racing forms and the next time he looked at his clock it was nearly midnight.

"Wow," Lightning said quietly to himself. "I need to get home."

Lightning drove out of his office, down the long hallway, and out of the structure. He locked his headquarters and set off down the extremely dark road. It was times like these that Lightning truly wished he had headlights. Lightning made his way carefully down the long stretch of road that lead directly back to Radiator Springs.

Once he finally made it back, Lightning drove to the Cozy Cone's office to say goodnight to Sally. Lightning drove into the office and found Sally at her desk.

"Hey," he said. "Sorry I'm back a little late. I started some paperwork and I lost track of time."

"Huh," Sally said. She looked up from her desk. "So you didn't bother checking your phone or call me to tell me you were going to be late?"

"Sally, I'm sorry," Lightning said. "My phone is in my trailer, and I just completely lost track of time. I had some stuff I really needed to get done."

"Okay," Sally said. "You just scared me. Call next time, okay?"

"I will," Lightning said. He pulled up next to Sally. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"I know you didn't," Sally said. She then yawned. "I'm going to sleep though. I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay," Lightning said. He kissed Sally's cheek, drove out of the office, and into his own cozy cone. After sitting and some thinking about the inconvenient wedding plans, Lightning fell asleep.

The next morning, Doc woke Lightning up at six. "Come on, Rookie," Doc said. "It's time to train."

"Okay," Lightning said groggily. He opened the door and drove out. Lightning had only gotten five hours of sleep, so he was very tired.

"What time did you get back here last night?" Doc asked.

"Around midnight," Lightning yawned. "I finished all my release forms and applications for next season."

"Good," Doc said. "I thought I heard you come back around midnight last night. I'll go easy on you today."

"Thanks," Lightning said, relieved. As the two cars neared Willy's Butte, Lightning wondered whether or not it was a good idea to ask Doc to be his best man in the wedding. Doc had seemed depressed to Lightning ever since Lightning proposed to Sally and Sally said yes. Lightning decided to ask him after the training session.

Once he and Doc arrived at Willy's Butte, Lightning did a couple of warm up laps around the track and slowed down.

"What am I doing today?" Lightning asked.

"What do you need to work on?" Doc asked.

"I don't know," Lightning said, racking his brain. "Maybe agility. My wheel axles aren't as flexible as they used to be before my wreck."

Doc nodded. "I've noticed that," he said. "I know something that may help though."

"What is it?" Lightning asked.

"Wait here," Doc said. "I'll be right back."

"Sounds good," Lightning said.

While Doc was gone, Lightning drove a few laps around the track. He drifted from side to side, mainly killing time.

Two minutes later, Doc returned to Lightning with ten traffic cones. Doc set the cones in a straight line on the track with ten feet in between each.

"Weave through them," Doc said. "It should loosen your axles up."

"Okay," Lightning said. "How fast?"

"Start at thirty," Doc said. "Then we'll take it from there."

Lightning started his engine and started off at thirty miles per hour through the cones. He felt a tight pull in his right front axle, but he kept going.

"Good," Doc said. "Did you feel the pull?"

"Yeah," Lightning said. He stretched his bad axle, wincing at the pull.

"Try forty," Doc said.

Lightning turned around and picked up speed heading towards the cones. He turned his tires for the first cone and weaved through quickly. This time, the pulling in his axle was worse, but it felt great to stretch them.

"Good," Doc said. "Try fifty."

Lightning grinned and went through the cones again.

Before long, Lightning was ripping though the cones at seventy miles per hour.

"I'm going to try one hundred," Lightning said eagerly. He lined up with the cones.

"Go ahead," Doc said. "You probably won't make it though."

"Oh well, I'm still going to try," Lightning said. He revved his engine loudly and sped through the cones, throwing his wheel s from left to right and to the left again. He went through the last cones and stopped.

"You were saying?" Lightning asked smugly.

"You've got stuff, Kid," Doc said, obviously pleased. "My record was eighty-five."

"That's good too," Lightning said.

"Yup," Doc said. "You're done. Don't worry about training tomorrow, just be ready for a hard day after that, okay? You'll be sore tomorrow."

"Got it," Lightning said. "But Doc, I have to ask you a question, okay?"

"Okay, Rookie," Doc said. He began to pick up the cones on the track. "Shoot."

"Will you be my best man at the wedding?" Lightning asked.

Doc froze. He dropped the cones. "It's not a good idea," he said quickly, speeding away again, leaving Lightning coughing and dumbstruck in a cloud of dust.

Lightning furrowed his brow. He had never seen Doc act in that manner before. Lightning began to wonder if Doc was not completely against him getting married. Lightning picked up the cones and drove back to Radiator Springs.

Once he made it back to the tiny town, Lightning put the cones away and drove to Flo's where he saw Sally eating breakfast.

"Hey," Sally said. "How did your training go?"

"The training went well," Lightning said in a flat tone.

"That's good," Sally said, obviously confused. "Why do you seem so upset?"

"Because I don't think Doc wants us to get married," Lightning replied. He shifted uncomfortably; his wheel axle was sore.

"That's a little paranoid," Sally stated. "Are you sure? How do you know?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Lightning said. "Whenever I try to bring the topic up, he says something short and speeds away. It's happened twice in the past twenty-four hours."

"I'm sure there's a logical explanation," Sally said.

"Maybe," Lightning said slowly. "But Doc has been too distant lately to ask him if he's okay or not."

"Just be there for him," Sally said. "He'll open up sooner or later."

"I hope so," Lightning replied. "I really do."

**A/N: Okay, there's chapter one!!! I hope you enjoyed it, it does get better! I'm just trying to get into the plot for now. Due to my elatedness at USC (University of South Carolina, not University of Southern California) beating UGA (IN ATHENS I MIGHT ADD!!!), I am in a good mood and will try to start on chapter two right now. I can't promise it will be up tonight because my mom has given me a one o'clock curfew on the computer, but I'll try my hardest.**

**Go Gamecocks!!**

**And review if you REALLY want chapter two up right tonight…it may make me type faster **


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Here's chapter two! I hope you enjoy it! I was hoping for a few more reviews though….maybe I just won't update till I get at least ten reviews per chapter…. **** I'm so evil…bwa ha-ha!! **

**Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own it….**

Five days later, Lightning was packing his stuff to put in his trailer. Much to Sally's pleasure, he had completed his guest list.

"Be safe," Sally said, following Lightning out to his trailer.

"You know me," Lightning said. "I'll be fine. There are only seven races left in the season."

"I know," Sally said. "But that doesn't stop me from worrying about you."

"I know it doesn't," Lightning said. "But I know a thing or two about racing, so I should be okay."

"Okay," Sally said, smiling up at Lightning.

"Time to load up, Kid!" Doc called from around Mack.

"Okay!" Lightning called back.

"How long until you can come home again?" Sally asked.

"Three or four weeks," Lightning replied. "But it's just for a day or two."

"Okay," Sally said. "I'll keep planning.

"You do that," Lightning said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay," Sally said. She drove up to Lightning and kissed him. The couple ignored the paparazzi around them as usual.

"Break it up, kids," Doc said shortly, driving around the trailer.

Lightning gave Sally a significant look. "I told you," he said quietly.

"Okay, maybe so," Sally said. "But I'm not totally convinced."

"You will be," Lightning said. "But I have to go."

"Okay," Sally said. "Bye."

"Bye," Lightning said. He backed into his trailer, smiled down at Sally, and shut the door.

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Ten hours later, Mack pulled into Houston International Speedway. Lightning lowered his ramp and drove down it. He saw Doc talking to a fellow crew chief, so Lightning waited patiently for Doc to finish talking.

"Hey, Doc," Lightning said, approaching his crew chief as the other one drove off.

"Hey, Rookie," Doc said. "How was the trip?"

"Fine," Lightning said, stretching his wheel axles. They were very stiff. "Is everything okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Doc said, avoiding Lightning's eyes. "Now, about your training schedule. I want you to break the one hundred lap sprint record."

"Okay," Lightning agreed. "Do I start tomorrow morning?"

"Yeah," Doc said. "Go into the city and get something to eat, come back, and get a good night's sleep."

"Will do," Lightning replied. "You wanna come with me?"

Doc hesitated. "Yeah, okay," he said.

"Good," Lightning said.

"Nothing fancy though," Doc said. "Let's just do something quick."

"I agree," Lightning said.

Thirty minutes later, Lightning and Doc were at a small diner in Houston. Lightning ordered his usual fuel that was high in electrolytes and Doc got a blueberry fuel.

"How far ahead of Chick are you in points?" Doc asked.

"A lot," Lightning said. "If I finish in the top fifteen of every race before the Dinoco 400 I'll get the Piston Cup."

Doc nodded. "That's what I figured. I was like that before my wreck, so don't let it go to your head."

"I know," Lightning said. "Believe me. Last season definitely woke me up to that possibility."

"I know," Doc said. "Chick's been fairly gentle out there this season, but you never know what he'll do."

"Yeah," Lightning agreed. "Did you race against someone like him when you raced?"

"Kind of," Doc said. "He wasn't as rough as Chick has proven to be, but I got my fair share of scratches and dents from him."

"What was his name?" Lightning asked.

"He went by Edge," Doc said. "I think his real name was Bradley or something."

Lightning snorted. "You guys went by nicknames?"

"Back in the day, yeah," Doc said. "I was the Hornet."

"Nice," Lightning snickered.

"Well Lightning is an unusual name," Doc said. "It is your real name, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Lightning said. "The kids at school had a lot of fun with that."

Doc laughed. "I can imagine," he said.

Just then, Lightning's phone started ringing. The caller I.D. said it was Sally.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," Sally said. "What are you doing?"

"Just eating dinner with Doc," Lightning said. "What about you?"

"I just got finished ordering the food for the wedding," Sally said. "We're giving our guests a choice of blueberry, grape, or pineapple fuel."

"Oh," Lightning said. He did not like any of the fuel Sally had ordered. "That sounds good."

"Good," Sally said. "Anyway, Lizzie's having a nervous breakdown again, so I have to go deal with that. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay," Lightning said.

"I love you," Sally said.

"Love you too," Lightning muttered quickly, hoping Doc did not overhear him. He hung up his phone and sighed. More wedding plans to fret over.

"I'm guessing that was Sally," Doc said.

Lightning nodded. He did not want Doc to leave, so he quickly changed the subject. "So, what injuries did you sustain from your wreck?" Lightning asked randomly.

"Uh, let's see," Doc said. "Fractured wheel axles, new aluminum, a couple fractured pipes. It was bad, but not as bad as yours was."

"How did you get in your wreck?" Lightning asked. "What happened?"

"I tried to pass between two cars and I was shut out," Doc said. "I wasn't focused on the race. My mind was other places."

"I can relate," Lightning said. Sally had dumped him before the race he wrecked in.

Doc nodded. "You need to keep your mind in the game on the track," he said. "That's the most important rule out there."

Lightning nodded. "Why couldn't you concentrate on the race?" he asked.

Doc froze. "Don't go nosing in my business, Rookie," he said coldly. "Mind your own."

And with that, Doc stormed out of the restaurant.

**Author's Note: Yeah, I know, I'm sorry…this chapter is ****sooooo**** short. It was going to be a lot longer, but I cut chapter two in half so I could update sooner. I should be able to update sometime next weekend if AP Statistics and ****Precalculus**** allow me to….**

**And btw, was anyone else shocked that Owen Wilson tried to commit suicide?! That sucks so ****bad****! He's my favorite actor! Without Owen, there could never be Cars 2! (Which is, btw, rumored to come out in 2011****… **

Review if you want more….


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay, here's chapter three!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Cars.**

Like he had the other times Doc stormed out, Lightning watched dumbstruck as Doc sped away. Lightning was getting tired of Doc's frequent tantrums.

"For goodness sakes," Lightning mumbled. Lightning paid the waitress and drove down the city street, taking several photographs and giving autographs to excited fans on the way back to the track.

Once he got back to the track, Lightning looked for Doc but he was unable to find him. After searching for ten minutes, Lightning sighed and drove back to his trailer. Lightning took two hours to fall asleep.

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The next morning, Lightning's alarm went off at six and he drove out of his trailer, stretching his wheel axles on the way. He found that Doc was not coming for his training that morning and he had left a note for Lightning that read:

Rookie-

100 laps at a sprint. It shouldn't take you more than 45 minutes.

-Doc

"Forty-five minutes?" Lightning asked. "Geeze, Doc. Way to take it easy on me…"

Lightning drove out onto the track and warmed up. He lined up at the starting line, avoiding the other racecars. He took off at a sprint and raced around the track as many times as he could, going over two hundred miles per hour. After seventy-five laps, Lightning started to tire. He pressed himself further, but he was slowing. He finished his one hundredth lap in an hour and two minutes.

Winded, Lightning made his way to the fuel station and drank three cans of fuel. Lightning drove back to his trailer, still catching his breath. He wondered where Doc had been during his training as he turned on the television in his trailer.

Lightning had been watching the news for an hour when his phone rang. He saw on his caller I.D. that it was Doc.

"Where are you?" Lightning asked, answering the phone.

"I'm taking a couple days off," Doc said shortly. "I won't be back for race day."

"What?" Lightning asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"It means I will not be back by Sunday," Doc said.

"Who will my crew chief be?" Lightning asked.

"Fine someone," Doc said. "There are plenty of cars that would happy to be your crew chief for a day."

"But you're my crew chief!" Lightning said angrily.

"I know that," Doc said. "But not on Sunday."

"Just tell me where you are," Lightning said.

"Alabama," Doc said.

"Alabama?" Lightning asked. "What's in Alabama?"

"Old friends," Doc said.

"Old friends?" Lightning asked, very confused.

"Yeah," Doc said, starting to sound angry. "This conversation would go by much faster if you wouldn't repeat everything I say. I'm not coming to the race Sunday. Just get your little fiancé to do it."

And with that, Doc hung up.

"Maybe I will," Lightning said angrily. He pressed the number two speed dial on his phone, dialing Sally's number.

"Hello?" came Sally's groggy voice.

"Hey," Lightning said. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"

"Don't worry about it," Sally said. "What's up?"

"Will you be my crew chief Sunday?" Lightning asked.

"Where's Doc going?" Sally asked.

"He's in Alabama," Lightning said.

"What's he doing there?" Sally asked.

"Who knows," Lightning said. "He claims he's there seeing old friends, but I don't know if that's true or not. Doc's been acting really weird lately."

"He has been a little off," Sally admitted.

"He left me a note this morning saying to sprint one hundred laps in forty-five minutes!" Lightning said.

"Goodness," Sally said. "Did you do it?"

"Of course not!" Lightning said heatedly. "I made it in an hour and two minutes."

"That's not bad," Sally said. "But he doesn't need to be pressing you this hard."

"Yeah," Lightning agreed. "I don't know if my wheel axles are up to it. But anyway, will you be my crew chief Sunday?"

"I will, but I don't really know how to do it," Sally said. "What if I cause you to wreck?"

"You won't," Lightning replied. "You tell me things I can't see on the track and keep me company."

"Okay," Sally agreed. "That sounds easy enough."

"It is," Lightning said. "When do you think you'll be able to get here?"

"I'll fly out in a day or two," Sally said. "You're in Houston, right?"

"Yeah," Lightning said. "Just be here by Friday."

"I can make that happen," Sally said. "I have to register for gifts at the store and I'll get down there."

"Sally, hang on," Lighting said. "We can buy what we need. The people in Radiator Springs don't have that much. Don't make them buy us stuff we can get ourselves."

"Okay," Sally said. "I didn't think about that."

"Yeah," Lightning said. "Anyway, go back to sleep. I forgot about the time difference. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Sally said. "I have to start on the invitations anyway."

"Oh," Lightning said. He knew once the invitations were send out, the date of the wedding would be final. "Okay,"

"I'll talk to you later," Sally said. "Love you."

"I love you too," Lightning said. He then hung his phone up. Lightning remembered there was a mandatory meeting he had to attend, so he drove to the infield where the meeting was taking place.

During the meeting, the racecars were lectured on the racing rules as usual. Lightning ignored the chairman of the racing board and thought about the demanding wedding plans Sally was putting together and Doc's absence. He was very distracted by both.

"McQueen!"

Lightning jumped out of his trace."Here!" he said as the chairman called attendance.

"Does your racing team still consist of Doc Hudson, Guido, Luigi, Serge, and Fillmore?" the chairman inquired.

"No," Lightning replied. "Sally Carrera will be substituting for Doc Hudson."

The chairman nodded, made a note on his clipboard, and moved onto the next racecar.

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The next morning, Lightning woke up and drove to the track to attempt his sprint again. Lightning warmed up and stopped to ask his timer, a large SUV a question.

"What is the one hundred lap sprint record here?" Lighting asked.

"Fifty two minutes and three seconds," the SUV replied

"Who set it?" Lighting asked.

"The Hudson Hornet in '54," the SUV said. "It was his last training session before his big wreck."

Lightning nodded, realization hitting him. "Thanks," he said slowly. "I'm ready to start now."

"Okay," the timer said. "I'll start when you do."

"Sounds good," Lightning said. He drove up to the starting line and shot down the track. Lightning sped as fast as he could around the track and kept the a constant speed until he had ten laps left to go. At ninety laps, Lightning floored his engine. He felt a familiar throbbing in his front right wheel axle as he rounded turn four with five laps to go. Lightning ignored the pain coming from his underside and attempted to go faster, but he was maxed out with a speed of two hundred and twenty miles per hour.

A minute or two later, Lightning charged across the finish line, almost positive he had finished in under forty-five minutes.

"What was my time?" Lightning asked, out of breath.

"You hold the new record at this track for a one hundred lap sprint," the clocker said proudly. "Your time was forty-two minutes and three seconds."

"Awesome!" Lightning said. "Thanks!"

The SUV laughed. "No problem, Mr. McQueen. I'll turn in your times."

"Okay," Lightning said. He turned around and drove back to his trailer, driving slowly and not putting any weight on his front right tire.

Once he arrived back at the trailer, Lightning got a bag of ice and rolled over it to where it was under his throbbing wheel axle. Lightning turned on his radio and enjoyed he warm sunshine. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

"Hey!"

Lightning's eyes snapped open and he saw Sally in front of him.

"Hey," he said somewhat groggily. "You're here early."

"I know," Sally said. "I hope you don't mind."

"Of course I don't," Lightning said. He rolled forward and kissed his fiancé.

"Why are you sitting on ice?" Sally asked, glancing around Lightning at the mostly melted bag.

"My wheel axle is bothering me a little," Lightning said. "It's no big deal."

"It could be," Sally said. "You should get it checked out."

"Nah," Lightning said. "It's probably because I just sprinted one hundred laps in forty-two minutes."

"Are you serious?" Sally exclaimed. "That's incredible!"

"Thanks," Lightning said. "It's the track's new record."

"Congratulations!" Sally said. She drove up closer to Lightning. "Let's celebrate tonight. Do you know any good restaurants around here?"

"Nope," Lightning said. "But I'm sure we can find one. Doc and I just ate at a diner last night."

"Okay," Sally said. "What do you have to do around here?"

"Nothing really," Lightning said. "Sleep."

Sally laughed. "Are you tired?"

"A little," Lightning said. "But I'm done with my training until the race so I can catch up on some sleep."

"Good," Sally said. "You're not going to train again before the race?"

"Nah," Lightning said. "I have physical therapy sessions everyday at three."

"For your wheel axle?" Sally asked.

"Yeah," Lightning replied.

"It's bothering you a lot, isn't it?" Sally asked.

Lightning shrugged. "They were pretty messed up last year, Sally," he said. "Some pain is normal."

"Okay," Sally said. "Just tell me if it gets worse, okay?"

"You'll be the first to know," Lightning said.

**A/N: Okay, there's chapter three. I'm sorry it's another short one, but as I said earlier, this was supposed to be part of chapter two, so yeah they should be longer from now on unless I don't have time to type out a full chapter. Okay, review! I'm having a serious review shortage here and it's very discouraging….**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Here's chapter four!! I can't believe I'm updating this faster than I thought I would. No thanks to the excessive reviews though. If it weren't for the three or possibly four loyal readers this story has, I wouldn't update at all. Please comment!! I thrive from them, and when my email inbox is empty after school, I get very sad!!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I do not own Cars.**

On Sunday, Lightning woke up early and rolled out of his trailer. He drove down to the track buffet for a little breakfast like he usually did. The race did not start until one, so he had seven hours to kill before race time.

Lightning got two cans of electrolyte fuel and settled at a table by himself, eyeing Chick who was across the dining room.

After he finished the fuel, Lightning drove out to the track for a quick last-minute training session. Lightning found a groove in the track that he thought would work for him in the race. He stayed in the groove as he drove at one hundred miles per hour around the track a couple times. Lightning drove off of the track and drove back to his trailer, looking forward to sitting on ice for a couple hours. His wheel axle was throbbing. This worried Lightning a bit because he had not worked hard at all.

Three hours later, Sally arrived at Lightning's trailer.

"Good morning," she greeted Lightning cheerfully. "Are you ready?"

"I think so," Lightning said, shifting on his ice pack.

"Is your wheel axle bothering you?" Sally asked.

"A little," Lightning admitted. "Not bad though. I'm fine, don't worry about me."

"You know that's not going to happen," Sally said. "Should you be racing today?"

"Of course I should!" Lightning said, surprised Sally would even think about that possibility. "There's no reason for me to scratch!"

"Yes, there is," Sally said. "Your wheel axle is hurting! If it breaks out there on the track, you'll be out for the rest of the season!"

"Sally," Lightning said quietly. "Don't do this to me. Please."

Sally sighed. "I'm just uncomfortable with it."

"I'll put my brace on," Lightning said told her. "How's that?"

"Okay," Sally said, still looking apprehensive. "It has metal stabilizers on it, right?"

"Yeah," Lightning said.

"Good," Sally said. Her expression softened. "I just don't want you getting hurt again."

"I know," Lightning said. He gave her a sideways glance. "You don't like me racing, do you?"

"It's not that I don't like you racing," Sally said slowly. "It's just…I saw your wreck up close in person, and now whenever I see you out on the track, I think of it. I can hardly watch you race without feeling sick. Your wreck replays over and over in my head."

Lightning did not know what to say but there was no need. Sally drove up to him and hugged him. Lightning felt her shudder slightly and heard her sniff.

"Hey," he said quietly. "It's okay. Don't fall apart on me before I can get out on the track."

"I'll try," Sally said softly. She backed up and sniffed. "Sorry, I can turn wimpy when I'm scared."

"Everybody does," Lightning said, grinning. "Except for me. I get mean."

Sally gave a watery laugh.

"I'll be fine," Lightning said. "But if you don't want to be my crew chief, I can find someone else."

"I can do it," Sally said.

"Okay," Lightning said. "I'm sure you'll do a great job."

"I hope you're right," Sally said.

"I know I am," Lightning replied.

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Several hours later, Lightning was on the track lined up, his engine started, and waiting for the green flag to be dropped. The racing official dropped the flag and Lightning shot out onto the track. He allowed Chick to pass him so he could get bump draft.

"Is everything clear behind me?" Lightning asked.

"Yes," Sally said through the intercom system. "

"Who's in third and how close is he to me?" Lightning asked.

"Hollister," Sally said. He's about ten feet behind you."

"Thanks," Lightning said.

"No problem," Sally said. "I'm supposed to tell you about caution flags too, right?"

"Yeah," Lightning said, blocking Hollister from passing him.

An hour and a half later, there was a fairly severe wreck on the track including Hollister and another car Lightning hardly knew. Debris was everywhere on the track.

"A caution flag is up," Sally said.

"That'll be because of all this debris," Lightning said, swerving to avoid a warped bumper.

Thirty minutes later, Lightning was heading into the final five laps of the race. He was in first, but Chick was coming up fast.

"Chick's coming up on the inside," Sally warned Lightning.

"Okay," Lightning said. He drifted inside and sped up slightly.

Suddenly, Chick sped past Lightning on the outside. "See ya later, McQueen!" he cackled.

"Sally!" Lightning said. "Tell me when he switches sides!"

"Sorry," Sally said, obviously bothered by her mistake.

Lightning floored his engine, getting neck and neck with Chick. For four laps the cars dueled, but when they crossed the finish line, Chick was ahead.

"Ugh!" Lightning groaned. "No!"

Lightning dove slowly back to his trailer and started packing his things for his next race. Suddenly his phone started ringing.

"Hello?" he asked, not even checking the caller I.D.

"What happened out there?" asked Doc's voice.

"I didn't see him coming up," Lightning said glumly.

"Why not?" Doc asked.

"Because I was told he was coming up on the inside," Lightning said. "Not the outside."

"Mhmm," Doc said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lightning asked angrily.

"Nothin'" Doc said gruffly. "I'll meet you in Philly day after tomorrow."

"Sounds good," Lightning said edgily. He hung up the phone and packed his stuff in his trailer. Lightning took his brace off and was startled to see it was soaked in oil.

"Whoa," Sally said driving up. "What's that from?"

"My wheel axle I guess," Lightning said.

"Go to the track doctor," Sally said.

"I'm fine," Lightning said. "My brace probably just rubbed it a little." Lightning drove forward up the ramp and into his trailer to put the brace away.

"I don't think you are," Sally said, fear dripping from her voice.

"What?" Lightning asked, slightly panicked.

"Look."

Lightning looked behind him and saw a trail of oil behind glistening behind him.

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"It needs a few staples," the track doctor said thirty minutes later.

"Do you know what caused it?" Lightning asked.

"There was a lot of debris out there," the doctor said. "You're lucky you were wearing your brace. If you hadn't been, it's likely it would have sliced your axle in two."

Lightning nodded. "Is there any extra swelling down there?" he asked.

"There is some," the doctor said. "But considering your wreck last season, it should be fine."

"Thanks," Lightning said twenty minutes later. He had four staples in his wheel axle. "So I can race Sunday, right?"

"Yes," the doctor answered. "The staples can come out after your face Sunday."

"Okay," Lightning said. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," the doctor replied.

Lightning drove out of the structure and have to his trailer. His wheel axle was incredibly tender.

"What did the doctor say?" Sally asked.

"I must have driven over a piece of debris or something," Lightning said. "It split my axle open. He put four staples in my wheel axle that get taken out after my race in a week."

Sally nodded. "I'm sorry I wasn't a good crew chief," she said.

"You were fine," Lightning said. "It takes practice to see everything you need to see out there."

Sally nodded. "Well next time Mack should probably do it. I guess racing just isn't for me…"

"You're fine," Lightning said.

"Yeah…well my flight leaves in a couple hours. I'd better get to the airport," Sally said.

"Okay," Lightning said. He pulled forward and hugged Sally.

"I'm going to miss you," Sally said quietly.

"I'll miss you too," Lightning said. "It's only three weeks though."

"That's too long," Sally said.

"Compared to five months, I think it'll fly by," Lightning said.

"Fair point," Sally said smiling.

Lightning pulled forward and kissed Sally. He ignored the paparazzi around him snapping pictures of the intimate moment. "Bye," he said backing up.

"Bye," Sally said. She turned around and drove away.

Lightning watched his fiancé drive away and finished packing his equipment.

"Are you ready, Mack?" Lightning asked.

"Yeah, Boss," Mack called out.

"Okay, cool," Lightning said. He drove around the trailer, backed up the ramp, and closed the door to the racetrack.

Thirteen hours later, Lightning asked Mack to stop so he could drive around for a few minutes. His wheel axle tended to cramp up if it was stationary for too long. Lightning drove down the incline and pulled into the trimmed, well manicured grass on the side of the highway.

"Thanks, Mack," Lightning said.

"No problem, Boss," Mack said. "Are you feeling truck-sick? Because if you are, I have some build-up reducer in my cabin."

"I'm fine, Mack," Lightning said. "Thanks though. I'm just a little stiff."

"The old wheel axle?" Mack asked sympathetically.

"Uh huh," Lightning said.

"Go ahead and stretch," Mack said.

"I can't really stretch my axle though," Lightning said, uncomfortably shifting. "I'm afraid I'll rip the staples out."

"Oh," Mack said, nodding wisely. "I see your problem."

Twelve more hours later, Lightning arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He got off his trailer and drove directly to Doc who was waiting for him.

"Hey," Lightning said, driving very cautiously to where Doc was. His staples were stinging his underside.

"Hey, Kiddo," Doc said. His brow furrowed. "Why are you drivin' funny?"

"I sliced my bad wheel axle open," Lightning said. "I have four staples down there."

"How the heck did you do that?" Doc asked, almost angrily.

"I don't exactly know," Lightning said. "I took my brace off and it had oil all over it, so I went to the track doctor and there was a gash that needed four staples."

Doc nodded grimly. "So you're still racing Sunday?"

"Yeah," said Lightning.

"Good," Doc said.

Lightning nodded and shifted uncomfortably as one of the staples pulled his underside.

"You're in no condition to train," Doc said. "Take the week off."

"I'm sorry, Doc," Lightning said earnestly. "I guess I drove over a piece of debris and didn't see it. The doctor said it would have sliced my wheel axle open if I hadn't been wearing my brace."

"You didn't mean to," Doc said heavily. "I would like to take a look at it though."

"Now?" Lightning asked.

"Yeah," Doc replied. "Let's go to the first aid building."

"Okay," Lightning said. He followed Doc across the large parking lot, putting as little weight on his front right tire as possible.

Once he and Doc arrived in the first aid building, Lightning drove up the examining table's ramp. Doc drove under the table and flipped the light on.

"Geeze, Rookie!" Doc exclaimed.

"Is it bad?" Lightning asked, wincing as Doc prodded his wheel axle with a metal appliance.

"It's pretty torn up," Doc said. "You could have used one or two more staples than what you got."

"Are you going to put them in?" Lightning asked.

"I should," Doc said. "There's a pretty long gash without anything holding it together.

"Okay," Lightning said. "Go ahead."

Doc drove over to a drawer and pulled out a large axle stapler. He drove under the examining table.

Lightning closed his eyes and held his breath. Doc pulled the trigger on the staple gun and it shot a staple into Lightning's wheel axle.

Lightning moaned slightly and squeezed his eyes shut. "Ugh," he said. "I hate getting staples."

"You and me both, Kiddo," Doc said. "But you would need a lot more than five staples if you hadn't been wearing that brace."

"Yeah," Lightning agreed. He backed down the ramp that lead to the elevated table and parked beside Doc. "Thanks," he said as his wheel axle shook violently.

"No problem, Kid," Doc said. He looked over to Lightning . "You okay?"

"I will be," Lightning said. "I can't put any weight on my wheel axle."

"Do you think you need crutches?" Doc asked, a tiny bit of concern in his voice.

"I don't think so," Lightning said, taking a deep breath.

"I'm going to give you one," Doc said.

"No, Doc," Lightning said. "I really don't want crutches."

"If you're sure, Kid," Doc said. "Just be careful."

"I will," Lightning said. Then his phone started ringing.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Hey!" Sally's voice said. "Are you in Philadelphia?"

"Yeah," Lightning said. "Are you back home?"

"No," Sally said. "I flew to L.A. instead. I'm visiting my parents and going to the place where we're getting married to make arrangements. I sent out the invitations today."

"Oh," Lightning said. "That sounds good."

"Good," Sally said.

"Well I have to go," Lightning said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay," Sally said. "Love you."

"Love you too," Lightning said, not wanting Doc to overhear him. "Bye."

Lightning hung up his phone and sighed. "She's driving me crazy with all these plans," he said under his breath. Lightning thought he said it quietly to where it was only to himself, but unfortunately, Doc overheard him, thinking the statement was addressed to him.

"How many times do I have to tell you I don't care about your stupid wedding!" Doc said furiously. "It'll probably fall through like the last time you were engaged!"

Lightning's tank lurched as he stood staring at Doc. He had never thought, no matter how much Doc disagreed with the wedding, that he would go to that extreme.

"I didn't mean that," Doc said.

"Yeah, you did," Lightning said quietly. He hobbled out of the building, putting as much weight on his wheel axle as it would permit.

Lightning drove back to his trailer, not even noticing the rain falling from the cloudy gray sky above him. He drove up the ramp of his trailer and closed the door. Lightning turned on his plasma screen television and was surprised to see himself on the screen.

"Lightning McQueen, the rookie sensation of season before last, suffered a horrifying wreck last year," the commentator said. "He could not return during his second season of racing. Lightning is this season's Piston Cup point leader, but the wreck's lasting effects are taking their toll on him. In his wreck, Lightning crushed his front right wheel axle. This season, it has been bothering him relentlessly. It has had swelling every day, and in this past Sunday's race, Lightning split it open. The wheel axle has four staples in it."

"Five," Lightning corrected the television quietly.

"He's been through a lot," Doc said, appearing on the screen. "But he's tough. He'll make it through this."

With that, Lightning switched the television off, only to hear a banging on his door.

"Rookie, it's me," Doc called gruffly. "Look, Kid, I'm sorry for what I said. I don't know what I was thinking. He then paused. "I have some stuff to explain."

**A/N: Okay, that was chapter four! I had to type it at the speed of light, so ignore all the typos. Now, I'm tired and I have AP Statistics tomorrow. Please leave some reviews and make me sure I'm not going to be sleep deprived in class tomorrow for no reason (or that I'm typing for no reason).**

**Click the little button and type what you thought! Constructive criticism is always welcome!!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Okay, so this chapter is a little shorter, but what needs to get done is done. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Cars. The only thing I own is a horse.**

Lightning lowered his ramp and hobbled out weakly.

"You don't look too good," Doc said, a concerned expression on his face.

"I'm fine," Lightning said coldly. "Now what were you saying?"

"I have some stuff to explain," Doc said lowly. "Just listen to me, okay?"

"I'll try," Lightning said in the same icy voice.

"Good," Doc said. He looked to the ground. "When I was in my fifth season, I was engaged."

Lightning looked up. He had not known Doc had been engaged.

"And-uh," Doc said, getting quieter. "She was planning to surprise me and come to see my race when I was down in Houston." Doc's voice started shaking. "On the saw, she-ugh, got hit head-on by a truck and died on the scene. That's why I've been so distant about your wedding. I'm sorry, Kid. And I'd be happy to be your best man if the position is still available."

Lightning was completely shocked. He was rooted to the spot. "I'm so sorry, Doc," he said, not knowing what else he could say. "I'm sorry I've complained so much about my wedding in front of you. That must have brought back horrible memories. Of course you can still be my best man."

"Don't worry about it, Rookie," Doc said, tears in his eyes. "I figured you should know why I've been so rude lately."

"It's fine," Lightning said. "What was her name?"

"Juliet," Doc replied. "That's why I was down in Alabama. I was visiting her grave. That's where she was buried."

"I'm sorry," Lightning said, feeling like a broken record. "Was she pretty?"

"Oh yeah," Doc said, laughing a bit, a tear running down his hood. "She looked a lot like Sally to tell you the truth. Same color."

"Did she go crazy with wedding plans like Sally is?" Lightning asked.

"Not as much as Sally is," Doc said. "But she was definitely excited."

"I'm sorry, Doc," Lightning said for the millionth time.

"It's okay, Rookie," Doc said. "I'm the one who should be apologizing."

"It's fine," Lightning said, feeling a catharsis. "Do you want to go get something to eat?"

"I'll get us something from the track buffet," Doc said. "I don't want you rolling around too much on your wheel axle when it's healing."

"I can go to the track restaurant, it's a two minute drive!" Lightning protested, grinning. He was glad he and Doc were on good terms again.

"It'll be a ten minute drive for you," Doc sniggered.

"I'm okay," Lightning said, beginning to roll on three wheels next to Doc.

"You look like an idiot," Doc said.

"Fine, I'll drive on four wheels and be unbearable pain," Lightning said. He put his front right tire on the ground lightly, only pretending it hurt.

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Three days later, Lightning got up at six to beg Doc to let him train.

"No, Kid," Doc said. "Wait 'till tomorrow."

"Fine," Lightning huffed, half jokingly. He had been joking around a lot lately. With Doc back to the way he used to be, Lighting was very happy. "What am I supposed to do if I can't train?"

Doc shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "What have you been doing?"

"Nothing!" Lightning said. "That's the problem! I'm going crazy!"

Doc laughed. "I'm sorry, Kiddo," he said. "You can train tomorrow, Friday, and Saturday."

"Okay," Lightning said. "But what if I don't get back into shape before Sunday and I lose again?"

"You won't," Doc said. "You'll be fine."

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Sunday, Lightning rolled opened his trailer door and rolled out to a roaring crowd. He grinned at his fans and drove down to Doc.

"You ready, Rookie?" Doc asked.

"As much as I'm going to be," Lightning said. His training had gone fairly well. Thursday had been somewhat disastrous, but Friday and Saturday made up for it.

"Racers! Line up on the track!" the loudspeaker blared.

"I'll see you in a little while," Lightning said, turning towards the track.

"See you then, Kiddo," Doc said. "Go kick some bumper."

"Will do," Lightning said, grinning. He drove onto the track and parked on Chick's right.

"You ready to lose again, McQueen?" Chick asked, cackling.

"In your dreams, Thunder," Lightning said.

"Keep it cool, Rookie," Doc said through Lightning's intercom system. "Remember, float like a Cadillac…"

"…And sting like a beamer," Lightning said. He revved his engine and watched for the green flag to be dropped. Once it was, Lightning shot onto the track, his wheel axle protesting slightly. He got ahead of Chick and pulled into the inside groove in the track.

"Good, Kiddo," Doc said. "Try to stay in first for a while."

"Isn't that the game?" Lightning laughed.

"You know what I mean," Doc said.

One hundred laps later, Lightning pulled over for a pit stop.

"How's your wheel axle treating you?" Doc asked.

"Pretty good," Lightning said. He bared his teeth as Guido quickly changed his front right tire.

"Good," Doc said. "You've got one hundred laps left. Go get 'em."

"Will do," Lightning said, speeding off. He was in third behind Chick and Hollister, who was not injured too badly in the previous race. Chick and Hollister had not pitted.

Lightning easily passed Hollister and ended up behind Chick. Chick's racing strategy was blocking, so it was incredibly hard to pass him. Lightning stayed behind Chick for ninety laps, blocking Hollister the entire time.

Finally, Lightning saw an opening between Chick and the infield. Lightning floored his engine as hard as he could and made it through the opening, but just barely; half way through Lightning's move, Chick saw him and attempted to cut him off, but Lightning was too fast. Lightning grinned; he had completed his task of passing Chick. He was almost positive he had the race won. Chick's specialty may be blocking, but Lightning's was speed. Lightning pulled away from Chick and sprinted the remaining laps until he crossed the finish line in first place.

"Good job, Rookie!" Doc said. "Great finish!"

"Thanks, Doc," Lightning said. He turned into victory lane and answered a few questions from the press. Then he drove back to his pit area.

"How's the wheel axle doing?" Doc asked.

"Pretty good," Lightning said. He leaned onto his front right wheel axle and smiled.

"Good," Doc said, obviously pleased. "It's a lot better than it was Thursday, huh?"

Lightning laughed. "Much," he said, remembering the disastrous training session again. During the session, he had not been able to get around the track more than ten times at one hundred miles per hour before stopping and sitting on ice for the rest of the day.

"Good," Doc said. "Load up then. It's on to Seattle."

"Sounds good to me," Lightning said. "But when can I get my staples out? The track doctor from last week said they could come out after my race today."

"The same track doctor only put four staples in the axle," Doc said. "Wait till we get to Seattle, Kiddo. The more time you have to heal the better."

"Okay," Lightning agreed.

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Three days later, Lightning was training around the Seattle International Track.

"Go ahead and pick up a little speed," Doc said through the intercom system.

"Okay," Lightning said. Going down the straight, he sped up to over two hundred miles per hour. Lightning drove deep into the corner only to spin out and hit the wall.

"Ouch!" he said. The only thing that seemed hurt was his pride.

Doc laughed. "Are you okay, Rookie?" he asked.

"Yeah," Lightning said, "but how am I supposed to drive into the corners at top speed?"

"These turns have always been a little tricky," Doc said. "It takes a couple of days to get used to them."

"Okay," Lightning said. He picked up speed again and tried a few more turns, crashing into the wall each time.

"Try power sliding," Doc said.

"I'm not on dirt, Doc," Lightning said. "I'll just burn rubber on the track."

"You'd be surprised," Doc said. "Just try it."

"Okay," Lightning said, almost hesitantly. He drove into the corner again at top speed. Lightning threw his wheel axles to the right and floored his throttle. He made it around the corner successfully.

"Awesome!" Lightning exclaimed.

"Good job, Kiddo," Doc said. "That'll do for today."

"Okay, Doc," Lightning said. "So I'm supposed to power slide around every turn?"

"If you're over 180," Doc replied.

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Over the next few days, Lightning practiced power sliding around all the turns.

"You've got it down," Doc said Friday after Lightning's training session. "Take tomorrow off."

"Okay," Lightning said, almost thankful. He was afraid all the power sliding was going to hurt his wheel axle. It had not been bothering him too much, but Lightning did not want to reinjure himself.

"I want to check your wheel axle," Doc said once Lightning was off the track.

"Okay," Lightning said. He followed Doc to the paramedic's tent and drove up onto the examining ramp.

"It's still swelling down there," Doc said.

"Maybe it's because the staples need to come out," Lightning said hopefully.

"I doubt that," Doc said, giving Lightning a humored glance, "but I'm going to take them out anyway."

"Thanks!" Lightning said happily. The staples had been incredibly itchy lately.

"Uh huh," Doc said, getting an appliance from a drawer that resembled a giant crow bar. Doc drove back to Lightning and took the staples out one by one.

Once the last staple was out, Lightning backed down the ramp.

"Thanks, Doc," Lightning said. His axle was very sore now, but Lightning was satisfied.

"No problem, Rookie," Doc replied. "You're going to be sore for the rest of the day. Don't do anything stupid."

"Okay," Lightning said. "What are you doing this afternoon?"

"I'm a crew chief for the junior race this afternoon," Doc said. The junior race was a race for young racecars with potential for the Piston Cup further down the road.

"Oh," Lightning said. Doc normally did not participate in the junior races. "Who are you a crew chief for?"

"I don't know," Doc said. "I can't remember the kid's name…it's the King's grandkid. He's only five or six. He's a big fan of yours though."

"Huh," Lightning said. "I'd like to meet him."

"You can co-crew chief if you want," Doc offered. "I thought you wanted to relax and rest, but if you want to, you're welcome to it."

"I might," Lightning said. "I'll probably end up being a crew chief for my kids when they race, so it'll be good practice."

"Uh-huh," Doc said. "Be back here by twelve-thirty."

"Okay," Lightning said. He hobbled back to his trailer and watched television until twelve-thirty. Lightning drove slowly to his pit area where he saw Doc talking to a small navy blue car.

"Hey," Lightning said driving up.

"Hey, Rookie," Doc said. "This is Tripp Weathers."

"Hi," Lightning said, smiling down at the young car.

Tripp's eyes were wide as he looked up at Lightning. "You're L-L-Lightning M-McQueen," he managed to stutter.

Lightning laughed. "Yeah," he said. "Are you ready to race?"

"Uh-huh," Tripp said, still looking dumbstruck.

"Good," Lightning said. He put a pair of head phones on.

"Junior racers get onto the track!" the load speakers called.

"Go ahead, Kiddo," Doc said. "Do your best."

"Okay," Tripp said in a small voice. He turned around and drove with all the other junior competitors to the track.

"He's gonna be too distracted to race now that he talked with you," Doc mused.

Lightning chuckled. "I would have done the same thing if I had met the King growing up. I idolized him."

Doc laughed. "Are you ready, Tripp?"

"Yes sir," Tripp said quietly through the intercom system.

"Just relax, Kid," Doc said. "You'll do fine."

"Okay," Tripp said.

An hour later, Tripp finished eighth out of twenty cars.

"Good job!" Doc said as Tripp drove up to he and Lightning.

"Thanks," Tripp said.

"You're welcome," Doc said. "Go find your parents."

"Okay," Tripp said. "Bye Mr. Hudson and Mr. McQueen."

"Bye," Lightning said.

"See ya, Kid," Doc said.

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Sunday morning, Lightning woke up to a deafening boom of thunder. He opened his ramp and saw it was pouring down rain.

"Great," Lightning mumbled. He drove down the ramp into the downpour and next door to Doc's trailer.

"Is the race canceled?" Lightning asked.

"No!" Doc said, obviously outraged. "They should postpone the race but they insist on running it! I've been fussing at the officials all day, but they won't listen to me."

"What time is it?" Lightning asked.

"Ten," Doc said. "The race starts in three hours."

"Okay," Lightning said. "Should I still power slide in the corners?"

"No," Doc said. "Not when the track is as sloppy as it is."

"Okay," Lightning said. "How many cars have scratched?"

"Three," Doc said. "But none that really matter."

Lightning nodded. "I guess I'd better get ready to race then."

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Three hours later, Lightning was racing along the backside of the track.

"What place am I in, Doc?" Lightning asked, squinting through the downpour.

"I can't tell," Doc said. "It's raining too hard for me to see the infield tower."

"Okay," Lightning said.

"There's a caution flag out," Doc said. "But I have no clue where the wreck is."

"Great," Lightning said. He kept going down the straight at one hundred and eighty miles per hour. Three quarters of the way down the straight, Lightning saw the faint glow of taillights. "I think I'm coming up on the wreck."

"Okay," Doc said. "Just be careful."

"I am," Lightning said. He kept going, slowing down to one hundred and fifty miles per hour.

But suddenly it was not a faint glow anymore. It was a full defined taillight three feet away from Lightning's hood. Lightning gasped and threw his front wheels to the left to avoid the stalled car. He heard a crack that echoed through the stadium. Lightning felt a severe, intense pain coming from his wheel axle and knew it was broken.

**Author's Note: I know, I know, I'm incredibly morbid, hurting Lightning all the time. ****Haha****. I promise it kind of leads to a point (sort of). You guys will understand better when it's all over. Anyway, review now!! I wrote you a nice long chapter and I need to know what you guys think of it!!**

**REVIEW!!!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Here's chapter six! It's not my favorite chapter, but once again, what needs to get done is done. Have fun reading!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it…. **

"Doc," Lightning groaned, his voice full of pain. "I just broke my wheel axle."

"I'm on my way," Doc said shortly.

The thirty seconds Doc took to get to Lightning were agony. The pain that radiated from Lightning's axle was overwhelming. Lightning was dizzy with the pain it was causing him.

"Oh boy, Rookie," Doc said once he arrived.

Lightning was brave enough to glance down at his injury and was sickened when he saw the odd angle of his tire.

"It hurts so bad!" Lightning moaned.

"It's okay, Kiddo," Doc said. "Lean on me. We'll get you taken care of. The medics are on the way."

Lightning nodded and squeezed his eyes shut. The pain was making everything fuzzy.

"What did you try to do?" Doc asked.

"I was trying not to hit the car in front of me," Lightning grimaced. "I swerved and it just snapped."

Doc nodded. The sound of a siren was nearing.

"The medics are coming," Doc said.

"Good," Lightning said faintly.

Once the medics arrived they loaded Lightning into the ambulance, Doc right behind him.

"They're going to fix you up, Rookie," Doc said quietly. "You'll be fine."

"No I won't, Doc!" Lightning said, tears of pain and frustration spilling down his hood mixing with the rain. I'm out for the rest of the season, Chick's going to get the Piston Cup again, and next season I'll just get hurt all over again!"

"No you won't, Kid," Doc said. "You'll get fixed up and you won't get hurt again. You're going to get a Piston Cup. I promise."

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Two hours later, Lightning rolled sorely out of the hospital building on crutches. He had a metal brace holding his wheel axle in place. Lightning was in extreme pain, but tired enough to not think about it too much.

"How's your axle feeling, Rookie?" Doc asked, giving Lightning a sideways glance. He seemed nervous that Lightning was going to do something rash any moment.

"Same as five minutes ago when you asked," Lightning said edgily.

"I'm sorry I care," Doc said, looking away from Lightning.

"I'm sorry," Lightning sighed. "This is a pretty hard blow."

"I know it is," Doc said. I'm sorry, Kid. I should have scratched you."

"You know I wouldn't have scratched," Lightning said. "This isn't your fault."

"We could file a complaint if you want to," Doc said.

"It wouldn't do anything anyway," Lightning said, depression setting in.

"Okay," Doc said. "Go back to your trailer. We can be home in a couple hours."

"Hey, McQueen!" Chick called across the parking lot. "Do you like my trophy?"

Lightning looked over to where Chick was parked with a first place trophy next to him.

"Of course I bet you like my other trophy better!" Chick said.

A familiar, light pink car drove up next to Chick. It was Lightning's ex-fiancé, Halli Cruise.

"Hey, Lightning," she said, piercingly staring into Lightning's eyes. "I got a real fiancé this time."

"Come on, Kid," Doc said from behind Lightning. "They're not worth it."

"I know," Lightning said quietly. He drove the rest of the way back to the trailer and shut the door. This had definitely not been his day.

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Four hours later, Lightning backed slowly down his ramp and cautiously turned around. Maneuvering oh crutches was a lot harder than he thought it would be. Lightning drove awkwardly down the Cozy Cone, his axle throbbing relentlessly. Once he reached the office, he saw Sally at her desk.

"Hi," Lightning said miserably entering the office.

Sally looked up in surprise and when she saw her fiancé on crutches, he eyes got wide. "Oh my gosh! Lightning! what happened? Are you okay?"

Lightning sighed and shook his head. "Another season coming home empty-handed," he sighed. "I broke my wheel axle again."

"You're out for the rest of the season?" Sally asked, her eyes showing utmost concern.

"Yeah," Lightning said miserably. "I think I'm just going to go to bed…"

"Okay," Sally said. She drove up to Lightning. Her eyes were full of tears. "I'm so sorry, Hon."

"So am I," Lightning said. He turned around and drove out of the office and into his cozy cone. He shut the door behind him and shut his eyes.

An hour later, Lightning still could not fall asleep. His wheel axle was throbbing horribly and the pain was keeping him awake. Lightning locked his crutches on and drove out of the cozy cone and onto the stretch of bare land that seemed to lead on forever. He looked up at the stars. In the big cities Lightning had been in lately, the stars had been blocked by the lights, but in Radiator Springs they were bright and numerous.

"Hey," Sally said, driving up next to Lightning.

Lightning jumped and groaned as his wheel axle shot a spasm of pain through his entire underside.

"Sorry," Sally said.

"Don't worry about it," Lightning replied dully.

"I'm so sorry, Lightning," Sally said.

Lightning did not know what to say. He looked down at Sally and back up to the sky. "Why do these things keep happening?" he asked hoarsely.

"I don't know," Sally said. "But what I do know is that you don't deserve any of it."

Lightning sighed and shifted his weight uncomfortably. Sally pushed up against Lightning and allowed him to lean on her a little.

"Do you want to post-pone the wedding?" Sally asked.

Lightning did not want to think about the wedding. It made Lightning angry that Sally could even be thinking about the wedding at a time like this.

"That's coming a little late," he said coldly.

"What do you mean?" Sally asked.

"Our wedding is three days after the Dinoco 400!" Lightning exclaimed, letting all of his bottled-up emotion spill out. "I wanted a small wedding here in Radiator Springs! I don't like the fuel that you ordered, and that's just the start!

Sally's eyes filled with hurt. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked shakily, her eyes filling with tears.

"You were too excited," Lightning said. "I didn't want to hurt you."

"Oh like you just did?" Sally asked angrily. She turned around and sped away.

"Great," Lightning mumbled. He watched as Sally drove into the Cozy Cone's office and turned the light out.

Lightning stayed out under the starts until it was completely black. It had been an hour and a half since Sally sped away. Lightning decided to go talk to Sally. He knew it was late, but he thought it was important enough to wake her up. Lightning made his way slowly into the Cozy Cone's office and woke Sally up.

"I'm sorry I said those things," he said, staring at the ground.

"They were completely insensitive," Sally agreed.

"I know they were," Lightning said. "And I'm sorry. I really am."

"Just because you're sorry doesn't mean you didn't mean what you said," Sally countered.

"I won't deny the plans were a little demanding," Lightning said, "but I was willing to go through with them for you."

"I'm beginning to wonder if you really want to marry me," Sally said.

Lightning's tank lurched. "Of course I do!" he exclaimed. "Sally, you're everything to me!"

"Oh, really?" Sally asked. "If I'm so important to you, then why are you just telling me now the plans aren't working?"

"You were so excited," Lightning said. His wheel axle gave a particularly horrible throb. Lightning shut his eyes and groaned quietly. "Please forgive me," he added, somewhat weakly.

"How could I not forgive you?" Sally asked, a small smile on her face. "I love you, and for some reason no matter how difficult you are, that doesn't change."

Lightning smiled at Sally, relief etched in his face. He kissed her. "Thank you," he said quietly. "I've been a jerk to you."

"I've expected a lot of you," Sally said.

"Truce?" Lightning asked.

"Truce," Sally laughed.

Lightning smiled a little wider. He then yawned; he was exhausted.

"You haven't been to sleep yet, have you?" Sally asked.

"I can't," Lightning replied, returning to his miserable mindset. "My axle hurts to much."

"Stay in here with me," Sally said. "You don't need to be in pain and lonely."

"Seriously?" Lightning asked.

"Yeah," Sally said. "It's fine. You need to sleep. You've been through enough today."

"You can say that again," Lightning mumbled. "Oh, by the way, Chick's getting married."

"You're joking," Sally scoffed. "Gorgeous with no brains, right?"

"Pretty much," Lightning replied. "She's not as pretty as you though."

Sally blushed. "You're sweet," she said. "Who is she?"

"Halli," Lightning replied quietly.

"You're joking!" Sally said.

"I wish I was," Lightning said.

"Well, it kind of makes sense when you think about it," Sally said. "She fell for you when you were a lot like Chick."

"I was never a lot like Chick," Lightning said ignorantly. "We were just similar."

"You were a lot like Chick," Sally said. She gave Lightning a small smile. "I'm sorry, but you were."

"Not even a little bit nicer?" Lightning asked, stifling yawn.

"Nope," Sally said. "Now go to sleep." She turned the light off as Lightning cautiously unlatched his crutches from his wheel axles.

"Goodnight, Sally," Lightning said.

"Night, Lightning," Sally said.

Two minutes later, Lightning shifted his weight uncomfortably. He groaned softly.

"You okay?" Sally asked.

"Yeah," Lightning said in an unconvincing tone.

Sally flipped the light back on. "If you're not okay, just tell me."

"I broke my wheel axle in two places, Sally," Lightning said. "There is obviously going to be pain. I'm going to go back to my cozy cone so you can get some sleep."

"Don't worry about it," Sally said. "I'll be awake worrying about you anyway."

"You don't need to," Lightning said.

"But I will," Sally said.

"Very true I guess," Lightning said.

"Go get sleeping fuel from Doc," Sally said.

"I don't want to wake him up," Lightning said.

"I'm pretty sure he's not sleeping either," Sally said. "I'm sure he's up worrying too. I'll be here when you get back."

"okay," Lightning said, gingerly attaching his crutches on.

"I hate seeing you like this," Sally said, looking at Lightning in concern.

"I hate being like this," Lightning said, pulling out of the office.

Lightning made his way slowly down the dark main road of Radiator Springs to Doc's hospital. He awkwardly knocked on the door and waited until Doc opened the door. As Sally had predicted, Doc showed no signs of being woken up.

"Hey, Kid," Doc said. "What's going on?"

"Could I have some sleeping fuel?" Lightning asked, almost embarrassed.

"Sure, Kiddo," Doc said. "Having trouble sleeping?"

"Yeah," Lightning said, entering the structure.

"Is it because of pain or shock?" Doc asked.

"A little of both," Lightning mumbled. "But mostly pain."

Doc looked sympathetically at Lightning. "Okay, Rookie," he said. Doc drove to his cabinet that he stored fuel in and selected one.

"How long am I going to be on crutches, Doc?" Lightning asked miserably.

"I'd give it another week, Kid," Doc said. "You had one really nasty break and another smaller one."

"Then what will I get after crutches?" Lightning asked.

"A driving cast," Doc said.

"Okay," Lightning said, the wheels in his brain beginning to spin. "What will my speed limit be with a driving cast?"

"About fifty once you're healed enough," Doc said.

"That's all?" Lightning asked.

"Yeah," Doc said. "They get torn up pretty quickly if you go too fast."

"How quickly?" Lightning asked.

"At two hundred they only last twenty miles," Doc said suspiciously. "Why?"

"Just wondering," Lightning said, a plan forming in his head. "I just can't believe I'm missing another Piston Cup," he added in a depressed tone.

"I'm sorry, Kid," Doc said, administering the fuel. "Now, get to your cozy cone before this kicks in."

"Okay," Lightning said. He carefully maneuvered out of Doc's clinic and out onto the main street. Lightning drove down to the Cozy Cone's office and found Sally fast asleep with the light on. Lightning, beginning to feel the effects of the fuel, turned off the light with some difficulty, unlatched his crutches, snuggled up to Sally, and fell asleep.

The next day, Lightning woke up to a familiar horrible throbbing in his right front wheel axle. He groaned and looked next to him where Sally was reading.

"Are you okay?" Sally asked, glancing over to Lightning.

"Yeah," Lightning said. "Listen, Sally," he said. "We need to talk."

"About what?" Sally asked, looking baffled.

"I have a plan," Lightning said. "But you're not going to like it."

"I was wondering when the 'I'm going to race in the Piston Cup' scheme was going to come," Sally said.

"That's exactly what I'm going to say," Lightning said. "If I get a driving cast, I can go around the track twenty times and replace it."

"That's going to be a lot of pit stops," Sally said.

"I know," Lightning said. "It's twenty pits, but I just have to finish in the top thirty and the Piston Cup is mine."

"You're going to make Doc angry," Sally said.

"He'll cope," Lightning said.

"Okay," Sally said. "If you wear two driving casts, you'll be able to cut your pit stops in half."

"Good point," Lightning said. "So you're on board for this?"

"No," Sally said. "Not on board, but I know how much this means to you."

"Thank you," Lightning said. He kissed Sally.

"You're welcome," Sally said. "But I'm not taking the heat for this."

"I don't expect you to," Lightning said. "I just need to get my Piston Cup."

"I'm surprised you decided to tell me what you were planning," Sally said.

"Yeah," Lightning said. "But I trust you more than any other car, and I didn't want you thinking I was backing out of the wedding by disappearing a few days before it."

"Good thinking," Sally said. She smiled slightly, but it quickly turned into a frown. "I think you should tell Doc though."

"What would I say?" Lightning asked. "Hey, Doc, I just wanted to tell you that I'm going to race in the Dinoco 400, whether you like it or not."

"Oh you are, are you?" came Doc's voice from behind Lightning.

Lightning grimaced. He maneuvered around slowly to see Doc parked in the office doorway. "Hey, Doc," Lightning said meekly.

"Come on," Doc said. "We need to talk."

**A/N: Okay, there's chapter six! Once again, it's not my favorite chapter, it's a little too much dialogue for me, but I think it was a fairly vital chapter, so yeah…**

**But anyway, constructive criticism is always appreciated, and reviews are awesome.**

**Read + Review Faster Updates!! – There's a helpful equation for all of us!!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Okay, here's chapter seven! Read and review! **

**Disclaimer: Although I tired negotiating with Disney-Pixar, they wouldn't take my offer **

"Come on," Doc said. "We need to talk."

Lightning sighed and followed Doc out of the office. Doc drove a ways down the road and stopped. Lightning pulled up beside him. For a minute or two Doc was completely silent. Lightning gave him a sideways glance to read Doc's expression, but it was blank.

"We need to talk about your training schedule," Doc finally said.

"You're going to let me race?" Lightning asked, looking Doc square in the eye.

"Technically I can't stop you," Doc said. "But I'm going to have to design a brace that'll clear the racing board and keep your axle in place."

"Thank you!" Lightning said, not believing what he was hearing.

"I'll get started on that," Doc said. "It'll take me a while to design something."

"I appreciate this so much, Doc," Lightning said sincerely. "I really do."

"I know you do," Doc said. "If you didn't I wouldn't be doing this."

And with that, Doc pulled away from Lightning and back to his shed.

Lightning was dumbstruck for a few minutes. He slowly grinned; he was going for the Piston Cup.

"He's letting me race," Lightning said faintly, still not believing it.

Lightning turned around stiffly, wincing as he hit a small bump and drove back to the Cozy Cone's office to tell Sally.

"He's letting me race," Lightning repeated, still in a faint voice to Sally.

"You're joking!" Sally exclaimed.

"No," Lightning replied. He shook his head in disbelief. "He's building me a brace so I don't have to pit so often."

"You're lucky to have him, Lightning," Sally said.

"I know," Lightning said. "I don't know what I'd do without him."

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The next morning, Lightning woke up early to see Doc. He knew Doc did not sleep much so he would be awake.

"Hey, Rookie," Doc said when Lightning entered the office. A metal contraption was sitting on his desk.

"Hey," Lightning replied. He noticed the fatigued look in Doc's eyes and knew he had not been to sleep yet. "Is that the brace I'm going to be using?"

"I think so," Doc replied. "The problem is I can't figure out how to relieve the pressure off the tire. It's going to hurt."

"I can handle the pain," Lightning said. "I just need to stabilize the axle."

Doc shot Lightning a skeptical look.

"I can," Lightning insisted. "Let me try it out, Doc."

"Not now, Kiddo," Doc said. "You're not going to be ready to get off your crutches yet. We'll try it out next week."

"Okay," Lightning said. "I just wish it was a shorter race."

"Me too," Doc replied. "But we can't worry about stuff that's not in our control."

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A week later, Doc strapped his racing board-approved brace on Lightning's broken wheel axle.

"Just try to get around the track once at fifty," Doc said looking slightly hesitant.

"Okay," Lightning said, easing his weight onto his front right tire. A shot of pain ripped through his axle. Lightning winced, but he did not release the pressure from the tire. He pulled away, picking up speed. Lightning drove around the track one time at fifty.

"How did that feel?" Doc asked.

"Not too bad," Lightning replied truthfully. His axle was throbbing, but it was nothing too severe.

"Good," Doc said, obviously satisfied with the good news.

"Could I do a little more?" Lightning asked.

"Yeah," Doc said. "Try going around at seventy, and if that doesn't hurt then try one hundred."

"Okay," Lightning agreed. He turned carefully and set off around the track at seventy. Going around the first turn, Lightning's wheel axle started to sear in pain.

Lightning groaned but kept going. He power slid in the second turn and deeply regretted it when the ground put pressure on his injured axle, causing the pain to flare up terribly. Lightning slowed quickly, wincing every time he hit a bump. He was seeing starts from the pain.

Doc rushed up to Lightning and helped him to the side of the track.

"You okay, Kiddo?" Doc asked once he and Lightning were on even grounds.

"Hang on," Lightning mumbled faintly. He fought the stars that were obscuring his vision.

"Lightning?" Doc asked, looking slightly panicked.

"I'm here," Lightning said, a bit stronger. The stars had receded a little.

"You okay?" Doc repeated.

"Of course not!" Lightning said in a distressed tone. "I can't even get around Willy's Butte once at seventy without nearly passing out! This is hopeless!"

"I'm going to review the design of the brace," Doc said. "I'm going to see if I can improve the suspension to relieve pressure from the tire."

"There's no point," Lightning said glumly.

"Just try to roll forward a little," Doc encouraged him.

Lightning put his tire on the ground and put equal weight on all four tires. His front right tire started trembling uncontrollably.

Doc frowned. "C'mon, Kid," he said. "Let's get back to the clinic. We need to check to make sure you didn't put any new fractures in the wheel axle.

Lightning nodded and rolled forward slowly. He grimaced as his wheel axle gave out from underneath him.

"Here, lean up against me," Doc said. He braced himself for Lightning's weight and started rolling forward slowly.

Lightning groaned quietly as he and Doc made their way back to the clinic. When they were passing the Cozy Cone, Sally saw Lightning hobbling next to Doc.

"What happened?" Sally asked, speeding up to Lightning and Doc.

"The brace didn't work," Lightning said with gritted teeth.

"The brace worked fine," Doc countered. "I told you there was going to be pain."

Lightning did not respond. He continued his way to Doc's hospital, Sally right behind him.

Once they reached the clinic, Doc removed the brace and x-rayed Lightning's axle.

"There are no new fractures," Doc said, reading the x-ray.

"Good," Sally said, glancing up at Lightning.

"Not good!" Lightning said. "That means the pain I felt is going to be normal, isn't it, Doc?"

Doc nodded. "I'm going to line it with some padding and see if that helps."

Lightning shook his head dully. "It won't help," he said monotonously. "I'm just going through another season empty-handed."

"No!"

Lightning jumped, not expecting an outburst from Sally.

"You're not coming home empty-handed," Sally said. "If Doc and I work on the brace, we can find a way to relieve the pressure."

"Sally, it's no use," Lightning said. "I should just retire now. I could start training other racecars."

"Quit talking like that, Rookie," Doc said. "You're just upset. Any car would be."

"I'm not upset!" Lightning said. He received skeptical looks from both Doc and Sally. "Okay, maybe I am a little," he admitted. "But you two talking about it just makes it worse."

With that, Lightning rolled out of the room, putting as little pressure as possible on his front right tire. As soon as Lightning drove out of the clinic, he was caught by Kori Turbowitz.

"Lightning!" Kori said. "Could I have a minute?"

"I guess so," Lightning said. "If it's really a minute."

"Thanks," Kori said. "Word is that you're still racing for the Piston Cup. Is that true?"

"No, it's not," Lightning said.

"So you'll return next season?" Kori asked, seeming slightly surprised by Lightning's blunt response.

"I haven't decided yet," Lightning said. "Whenever I work hard and get back into shape, I get hurt again, so it seems pointless as of right now."

Kori seemed shocked. "T-thanks, Mr. M-McQueen," she stammered, losing her usual professional composure.

Lightning nodded and continued hobbling down the road. He entered his cozy cone and shut the door behind him.

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"Lightning?"Lightning's eyes opened slowly. He was disoriented for a moment before realizing he was in his cozy cone.

"Lightning, please open the door."

Lightning opened the door to his cone and drove out a little. Sally was waiting for him.

"Come to the office," Sally said. "We need to talk."

Lightning sighed and followed Sally to the Cozy Cone's office.

"What is it?" Lightning asked in the same dull tone he had been using ever since his disastrous training session.

"You can't quit," Sally said softly, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Why not?" Lightning challenged. "You don't even like me racing."

"That's not true," Sally countered. "I worry, but that's normal after what I saw last season. I'm proud of your career. Not everybody can say they're getting married to a racing sensation."

"Is that the reason you agreed to marry me? Because I can race?" Lightning asked harshly, glaring down at his fiancé.

The tears that had gathered in Sally's eyes spilled over. "Sometimes I wonder why I ever said yes," she said quietly before speeding out of the office.

Lightning sighed angrily. He drove out of the office and back to his cozy cone. Lightning thought back to what Sally had said. He glared at the picture he had beside his alarm clock of Sally laughing as he kissed her cheek. It had been taken an hour after they were engaged. Lightning shut his eyes, not wanting to look at the picture any longer, and willing his wheel axle to stop throbbing.

Before Lightning knew it, he was waking up to Jimi Hendrix and a shrill trumpet, both in the battle of the bands. Lightning cursed both Serge and Fillmore for disturbing his sleep. He opened the door to his cozy cone and drove out of it. His wheel axle was throbbing relentlessly. He drove past the Cozy Cone's office and pulled into Flo's café. Lightning received a nasty glare from Flo. Lightning figured Sally had gone to Flo after their fight. Very annoyed, Lightning realized he was not hungry after all and decided to return to his cozy cone to sulk.

Halfway back to his cone, a mob of reporters came out of nowhere and started harassing Lightning with questions.

"Lightning!" a reporter called. "What's this we hear about your early retirement?"

"Leave me alone, guys," Lightning said in his lifeless voice. He pulled away from the reporters but they kept following him.

"I think he told you guys to leave him alone," an angry voice said. Doc drove up behind the reporters, causing them to scatter.

"Sorry, Mr. Hudson."

"It won't happen again, Sir."

"Good" Doc said. "Come to my office, Rookie."

"Doc, I just want to go back to my cozy cone," Lightning said.

"I may have helped you get the reporters away, but I'm still not happy with you," Doc said shortly. "Now come on."

Lightning huffed, but followed Doc's orders.

"I don't know who you're trying to play, Kid," Doc sighed as he and Lightning entered his office.

"What do you mean?" Lightning asked angrily. "I'm not trying to play anyone!"

"Oh yes you are!" Doc countered. "You could get back on the track and you know it."

"Do I?" Lightning asked.

"Yes, you do!" Doc said. "You've been moping around feeling sorry for yourself! Toughen up!"

"It hurts!" Lightning said. "You saw me out there! I couldn't even lap the track at seventy!"

"You have to work for it!" Doc said. "Don't you remember last year? You worked your bumper off to back in shape and on the track!"

"Yeah, when I didn't think I could keep getting hurt!" Lightning said.

"You know what your problem is?" Doc asked. "You don't know how lucky you are."

"Lucky?" Lightning scoffed. "How the heck am I lucky?"

"You got hurt, and people actually wanted you back!" Doc said. "You have a fiancé that loves you, but after what you did to her last night, I'm not sure how she feels now. You have everything I didn't, and that includes a racing career ahead of you!"

Lightning froze and thought over what Doc had just said. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Don't tell me that," Doc said. "Tell Sally."

Lightning nodded and left the office feeling numb. He drove back to the Cozy Cone's office and saw Sally asleep. Lightning parked beside Sally and gently nuzzled her.

Sally woke up and saw Lightning next to her.

"Oh," she said. "It's you."

"Sally, I'm sorry," Lightning mumbled. He looked at the ground. "I made a really big mistake, and I know you're really upset, but please forgive me. There is no excuse for what I said, but I'm under pressure, and I just lost my temper." He looked at Sally uncertainly. "Please forgive me," he added, slightly desperate.

Sally seemed to think for a few minutes. "No matter how hard I try I can't stay mad at you," she said, giving Lightning a very small smile. The small smile quickly turned into a frown though. "But you need to know I love you for who you are, not just because you're a former world-famous racecar."

"You're wrong about that," Lightning said.

"What?" Sally asked, anger and rage dripping from her voice.

"You said a former racecar," Lightning said.

"You're not retiring early?" Sally squealed.

"No," Lightning said. "Doc knocked some sense into me," he added, smiling slightly.

Sally drove up to Lightning and kissed him.

"Wow," Lightning said, his lips still touching Sally's. "And I thought you didn't like me racing."

"Shut up," Sally said.

"Okay," Lightning said, kissing his fiancé back.

**A/N: Okay, so the ending is a little sappy, but it seemed to fit. I don't know if Lightning seemed a little out of character to you guys or not. I basically model Lightning's actions and dialogue after me (I have no idea if that is a good thing or not for my personality, but Lightning and I are incredibly similar), and if that happened to me, I would be very depressed so that's how I made him. Tell me if you guys think that's a good idea or not. Please review!!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Here's chapter eight!! I'm thinking there's going to be 10 or 11 chapters in this fic. I'm not positive about that, but that's what makes sense to me at the moment. This chapter isn't incredibly action-packed or anything, but it is setting up for a pretty cool next chapter. Enjoy!!**

**Disclaimer: If you don't know what's supposed to go here by now, I'm worried about you.**

The next morning, Lightning woke Doc up for a change.

"C'mon," Lightning said. "It's time to train!"

Doc woke up immediately. "So you're back, huh?"

"Yeah," Lightning said, trying to suppress his happiness slightly. "Did you work on the brace?"

"Yeah," Doc said. "I added a layer of neoprene to the inside so it should absorb shock and cushion the wheel axle. It should be more comfortable for you."

"Sounds good," Lightning said. "Did it pass the racing guidelines?"

"Yeah," Doc said. "Now let's put it on and see how it works. If this doesn't work then I don't know what will."

"Okay," Lightning said, slightly nervously. He knew that if the brace did not support his wheel axle well enough he would not be racing again until next season.

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Thirty minutes later, Lightning was tearing up the track at one hundred and fifty miles an hour. He pressed himself harder and got up to one hundred and seventy miles per hour.

"Good work!" Doc called through the intercom system. "Bring it in!"

Lightning slowed, his wheel axle throbbing slightly.

"How'd it feel?" Doc asked.

"Much better!" Lightning said excitedly. "It's throbbing a little, but it's nothing near what it was."

Good," Doc said. "We'll work up to four hundred laps eventually."

"Okay," Lightning said. "That sounds good."

"Yup," Doc said. "Now go ice your axle."

"Okay," Lightning said. He drove off the track, only favoring his wheel axle slightly. The drive to the Cozy Cone's office seemed much sunnier today; Lightning actually noticed how clear the blue sky was and did not mind the usual quarreling between Serge and Fillmore. Lightning reached the Cozy Cone's office where Sally had a bag of ice waiting for him.

"How did your training go?" Sally asked as Lightning settled on the ice.

"Really well," Lightning said, grinning widely. "I got up to one hundred and seventy today!"

"Great!" Sally said, grinning at her fiancé's enthusiasm. "So you like the brace?"

"I love it," Lightning said. "The neoprene is awesome. Whoever thought of it was pure genius."

"It was Doc and I. He wanted something foamy like a sponge and I found neoprene online," Sally said. "It's not very foamy, but it absorbs shock well and it's cushiony."

"I could kiss you," Lightning said.

"Then why don't you?" Sally asked, laughing a little.

Lightning rolled forward and kissed his fiancé.

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The next morning, Lightning's training went very well. He got up to two hundred miles per hour and power slid with better consistency than before.

"Great job, Kiddo," Doc said, looking incredibly happy.

"Thanks," Lightning said, a huge grin on his face. The grin faded slightly when a thought hit him. "Do you think I'll be ready for the Dinoco 400 in time?"

"You'd be ready for it if it were tomorrow," Doc replied. "Do you want me to register you?"

"If I have a chance at winning the Cup," Lightning said. "If not, I'll wait for next season."

"If you win, you'll get the Cup," Doc said. "I figured that up the day after you broke your axle."

"Awesome," Lightning replied. "What if I finish second?"

"Chick gets the cup by half a point," Doc said. "That is if he wins, which we can count on happening."

Lightning nodded. "It is what normally happens," he agreed. "Go ahead and register me."

"I will," Doc said. "Go ahead and rest up. You're bound to be tired. You've put a lot of effort in over the past two mornings."

"I am tired," Lightning said. "I'm sure Sally has something for me to do though."

"That's right," Doc said. "The wedding is only three weeks away, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Lightning said. "I feel so uninformed about it."

"You have been letting Sally do all the work," Doc said. "But you've been busy too."

"Yeah, re-breaking wheel axles and all has kept me busy," Lightning said, laughing slightly. "I'm going to see what needs to be done."

"All right," Doc said. "See ya, Rookie."

"Bye," Lightning said, driving up the bank from Willy's Butte to the Cozy Cone. On the way to the Cozy Cone's office, Lightning noticed that it was quieter than usual in Radiator Springs. Serge and Fillmore had not started blaring their music yet. Enjoying the quiet, Lightning reached the Cozy Cone's office.

"Hey," Sally said as Lightning entered the office.

"Hey," Lightning replied. "What needs to be done wedding-wise?"

"You're helping with wedding stuff?" Sally asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I feel like I haven't exactly been a huge help," Lightning admitted, slightly sheepishly. "I feel a little guilty."

"Don't worry about it," Sally said. "You have a busy enough schedule. I'm handling all the wedding stuff."

"So there's nothing I can do?" Lightning asked, eyeing his cozy cone hopefully. He was very tired.

"You can keep me company while I do wedding stuff," Sally said.

"Okay," Lightning agreed. "That sounds easy enough."

"It is," Sally replied.

"What are you doing?" Lightning asked, driving behind Sally's desk.

"Sorting RSVPs," Sally said. "So far only two people can't come."

"That's good," Lightning said. "Who can't come?"

"A couple of my old friends," Sally said. "You don't know them."

"Oh," Lightning said. "How many people can come?"

"Two hundred and seventy so far," Sally said.

"Wow," Lightning said. He then stifled a yawn.

"Yeah," Sally said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Lightning replied. "Just tired. I didn't realize how out of shape I was."

"Go to sleep," Sally said. "You need the rest."

"Sounds good to me," Lightning said.

And that was the last thing he knew.

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The next morning Doc woke Lightning up at six.

"C'mon, Kid," Doc said. "Time to train."

Lightning groaned and opened his eyes. He opened the door to his cozy cone and rolled out.

"We're doing some hard work today," Doc said.

"Fun," Lightning yawned.

"You kept the brace on, right?" Doc asked.

"Yeah," Lightning said, gently stretching his wheel axles. He winced as the pulled a little harder and his injured axle balked at the request.

"Good," Doc said. "I want you to wear it constantly. I don't want to mess up the alignment of your axles. If it heals in the wrong position you won't be racing for a while."

"I know," Lightning said, grimacing at the thought. "I'll definitely keep it on."

"Good," Doc said. "Now let's get you down to Willy's Butte to train."

"Okay," Lightning said, following his crew chief.

"Go ahead and warm up," Doc said once the two cars reached Willy's Butte.

"Okay," Lightning agreed. He got onto the track and started going around at fifty. After a couple laps Lightning took it up to seventy, and after seventy to one hundred miles per hour.

"Good work," Doc said. "We're going to try and get up to two hundred today for at least two hundred laps."

"Am I ready for that?" Lightning asked nervously.

"Yeah," Doc said. "You shouldn't have a problem with it."

"Okay," Lightning said. He was still slightly nervous, but he got on the track and took off anyway.

"You do realize this is going to take forever, right?" Lightning said into his intercom system.

"It won't be too bad," Doc said as Lightning power slid through his first turn. "Good work, Kiddo."

"Thanks," Lightning said, continuing to tear up the track.

An hour later, Lightning finished his two hundredth lap.

"Great work, Rookie," Doc said as Lightning drove up to him.

"Thanks," Lightning said, a little out of breath.

"Cool out a little and go sit on some ice," Doc instructed. "How does your wheel axle feel?"

"It hurts," Lightning admitted, "but then again I just drove two hundred miles at two hundred miles per hour."

"That is true," Doc said. "Go get some fuel and then sit on ice for an hour or two. Take off the brace to ice your axle. After you're done icing I want to x-ray your axle to make sure you're not tearing it up too bad."

"Okay," Lightning said. "Fuel, ice, x-rays. Got it."

"Good," Doc said. "Oh, and the Piston Cup circuit managers called me. Your spot has already been filled by an alternate, but I managed to get you the wildcard position."

Lightning nodded. "That means I have to start from the back of the pack, right?"

"Yeah," Doc said. "But you're good enough to where that shouldn't matter."

"Okay," Lightning said. "And after that, it's on to the wedding. Sally has already bought us our plane tickets so we can fly directly to L.A."

"Okay," Doc said. "I heard instead of helping Sally yesterday you fell asleep and took a four hour long nap."

"I was tired!" Lightning said indignantly.

Doc laughed. "Okay, Kid," he said. "Go ahead and get some fuel."

"Okay," Lightning said. "Thanks, Doc."

"No problem, Kiddo," Doc said. "I'll see you a little later."

"Sounds good," Lightning replied. He drove up the bank, onto the main road, and to Flo's café where he ordered two cans of electrolyte fuel.

"Hey," Sally said, driving up as Lightning finished his first can of fuel.

"Hey," Lightning replied, pulling his second can of fuel towards him.

"How did your training go this morning?" Sally asked.

"Really well," Lightning replied. "I did two hundred laps at two hundred miles per hour."

"That's great!" Sally said. "And to think less than a week ago you said you were quitting."

"I know," Lightning said, swallowing a mouthful of his fuel.

"What are your plans for the rest of the day?" Sally asked.

"I'm going to take a nap while sitting on ice after I finish my fuel and after that I have to get my wheel axle x-rayed. After that I don't have any plans," Lightning said.

"Okay," Sally said. "I might need help sorting some RSVPs a little later."

"I can do that," Lightning said. "If you want, I can do that while I ice my wheel axle."

"No, go ahead and rest," Sally said. "You've been working really hard lately. You need to get some sleep."

"That is very true," Lightning said, finishing his second can.

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Over the next three weeks, Lightning trained very hard. He and Doc arrived at the Motor Speedway of the South five days before the Dinoco 400 and Lightning trained every day, twice a day. The training went well; Lightning was very consistent. Lightning managed to do five hundred laps at two hundred miles per hour on Friday. He took Saturday off, and before he knew it, it was Sunday.

At twelve-thirty, Lightning drove out of his trailer, receiving deafening applause. Lightning drove over to where Doc was parked at his pit station.

"You ready, Rookie?" Doc asked.

"I hope so," Lightning replied, a nervous edge to his voice.

"You'll be fine," Doc said. "Just do what we've been working on."

Lightning nodded and swallowed.

"Racecars please drive onto the track!" the loudspeaker called.

Lightning's tank lurched. He hesitated before heading towards the track.

"Go ahead," Doc said. "I'll see you in victory lane."

Lightning smiled at Doc and drove onto the track. He lined up beside a racecar he didn't know. Lightning realized he had not started from the back of a race since his very first race.

"Racecars, start your engines!" the loudspeaker called.

Lightning started his engine loudly and revved it along with forty-two other cars. He watched intently as the racing official raised the green flag.

And then it was dropped.

**A/N: Okay, so there's a little suspense for you. Haha. Anyway, I have a question…what exactly do cars get married in?? I mean, they don't exactly wear clothes…do they get a paint job for like a day or what? Any ideas?? Please tell me! I'm kind of at a blank here! Haha. Please review!!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Here's chapter nine!! Time for the Piston Cup! Will Lightning win….? Read below for your answer!! Haha. We're getting close to the end!!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own cars.**

Lightning shot out onto the track along with his competitors. He weaved through them as quickly as he could; it took some time because the cars were tightly packed together.

"Don't get stressed out, Kiddo," Doc said. "It'll take some time to get through that mess."

"I know," Lightning said, passing another car.

"There might be an opening on the inside," Doc said. "It looks to me like there's one."

Lightning drifted into the inside, and sure enough, there was a long stretch of pavement free of any cars. He revved his engine and show down the track, passing cars quickly and numerously.

Before too long, Lightning was settled in second place behind Chick. He stayed in Chick's bump draft until he had to make a pit stop.

"Good work out there, Rookie," Doc said. "You're racing better today than I've ever seen you race."

"Thanks, Doc," Lightning said, grinning at his crew chief.

"Uh-huh, now, the race isn't over yet," Doc said, returning to his usual gruff mannerisms. "Get back out on the track."

Lightning revved his engine again and took off out of pit lane. He winced as a spasm of pain ripped through his wheel axle. Lightning shook off the pain and regained his spot in second place behind Chick.

Lightning's new tires gripped the pavement will. The traction helped him stay solid in track, which proved to be slippery at times.

"What lap am I on, Doc?" Lightning asked an hour or so later.

"Three seventy-eight," Doc replied.

"Okay," Lightning said. "When should I make my move?"

"I'd give it a few minutes," Doc replied. "Wait until you have ten laps left and then make your move. You don't need to waste yourself too early."

"I know," Lightning sighed, turning into lap three hundred and seventy-nine. "I'm just ready to go now."

Doc laughed. "I know you are, Kiddo. You'll be there soon enough. How's your wheel axle holding up?"

"It's okay," Lightning replied. "It's gotten worse since the start of the race, but it's not too bad."

"Okay," Doc said. "Tell me if it gets any worse. Don't be afraid to stop if you need to."

"Yeah, like that's going to happen," Lightning said sarcastically. He grinned; he was in this race to win.

Ten minutes later, Lightning began to make his move.

"Keep it steady, Kid," Doc warned him as Lightning drifted to the outside, getting ready to pass Chick.

"I am," Lightning said. He revved and floored his engine and shot past Chick. The crowd erupted as he sped into three hundred and ninety first lap.

"Watch out for Chick," Doc warned Lightning. "He's coming up on the outside."

"Okay," Lightning said. He watched for his rival to appear in the corner of his eye. Sure enough, ten seconds later, Chick pulled up alongside Lightning

"You ready to lose, McQueen?" Chick asked, swerving to where Lightning's titanium was an inch away from Chick's aluminum.

"In your dreams, Thunder," Lightning replied.

For six laps, Lightning and Chick stayed side by side. Lightning revved his engine but before he could pull away, Chick drifted into Lightning's front right wheel, causing Lightning's tires to slip on the pavement. He spun out into the infield.

"You okay, Rookie?" Doc asked, panic in his voice.

"Yeah," Lightning replied, groaning. He shot back out onto the track, trying to catch up with Chick.

"Lightning, you need to stop," Doc said. His voice still had an edge of panic.

"Why?" Lightning asked, flooring his engine once he was back on the track.

Then he felt it. His wheel axle was throbbing horribly.

"You lost your brace on the track back there," Doc said.

"There's not enough time for me to go back and get it!" Lightning said. "I'm not quitting to race now!"

"Your wheel axle won't last that long!" Doc said.

"I can at least try!" Lightning said. "I'm not quitting the race now!"

"Alright, Kid," Doc said. "Just take care of yourself."

"Will do," Lightning said. He floored his engine harder, giving his best effort to catch up with Chick. Pain was exploding all along Lightning's underside. It brought tears to Lightning's eyes, but he forced himself to ignore it.

Rounding turn four, Lightning pressed his accelerator harder and reached two hundred and ten miles per hour.

Lightning saw Chick ahead. He was getting closer and closer to his bumper.

With one lap left, Lightning caught up with Chick and attempted to pass him, only to get shut out.

Lightning quickly changed his position from the outside of Chick to the inside and floored his engine his engine. He passed Chick on the inside.

"Great job, Kiddo!" Doc said.

Lightning did not answer. He did not want to open his mouth because of the substantial chance he would vomit from the staggering throbbing coming from his wheel axle.

The pain was horrible. It did not only affect Lightning's front right tire, but his entire underside. Lightning was dizzy; he had never experienced such awful pain while driving. The only reason he kept going was the fact that the finish line was approaching quickly. Lightning shot across the line the line and promptly slammed on brakes. He pulled off the side of the track and stopped in the infield.

"You did it, Rookie!" Doc exclaimed. "You got the Cup!"

Lightning grinned despite the pain that was unrelentlessly pulsating throughout his entire underside.

"You okay, Rookie?" Doc asked, genuine concern in his voice.

"No," Lightning said, beginning to roll forward slowly. "But that's okay," he said, giddiness in his voice. He had just won the Piston Cup.

Doc laughed. "Get to victory lane so you can get your cup."

"I don't know if I can get there," Lightning joked. Happiness was running throughout his body to where he hardly felt the pain that was still radiating through his underside.

"Do you need help?" Doc asked.

"No, I'll get there," Lightning responded. He drove with surprising celerity to an injured car to the stage where the awards ceremony was. Lightning drove up the acclivity and onto the stage. He grinned at the crowd as streamers shot confetti around into the air around him and he was awarded his large gold trophy.

"Lightning!" Kori Turbowitz called from the crowd. "You've been trying to get here for two years. Now that you've won the Piston Cup, how do you feel?"

"I can't describe it," Lightning said, grinning at his favorite reporter. He shifted his weight from his injury. "This has been a dream for me since I was six years old, and now that I've done it, it seems unreal."

Kori smiled at Lightning and proceeded on with her next question. "How is your wheel axle feeling? You lost your custom-made brace with three laps left in the race."

"Not great," Lightning admitted, still grinning despite his pain. "And I hate to cut this short, but I have a wedding to get to!"

**Author's Note: Okay, so that's not really a cliffie, but I'll have fun writing the wedding chapter! Haha. ****Sorry this chapter was so short, but hey, LIGHTNING GOT HIS PISTON CUP!! WOO HOO!!! Haha. Anyway, t****hanks for all your responses on the car attire for the wedding! They were all so good! I think I'm combining all of the ideas into one because they were all so good, and they really fit well together.**

**Please**** review! It's going to be hard for me to get this chapter written before next weekend, but with some motivation from readers, I'm sure it can happen! **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Here's the final chapter! I can't stress how awesome this has been! I should be starting on the sequel to this around mid-December or so. Keep an eye out for it!! Thanks to all you awesome reviewers and I'll see you around mid-December or so!**

**Also, all of Sally's friends that you meet are my best friends in real life, and so are all of Lightning's friends too…you'll know what I'm talking about when you reach the point in the chapter…haha. ****I tried to match each of their personalities to a car and a color. ****Enjoy!!**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own cars. Never have, and probably never will.

Lightning drove down the ramp leaving the stage where Doc was waiting for him. He stopped next to his crew chief and let out a long breath. Lightning was exhilarated, exhausted, and in pain. All of Lightning's conflicting emotions confused him considerably.

"You okay, Kid?" Doc asked. His voice had an odd tone to it; something Lightning had never heard from Doc before. It seemed to swell with pride.

Lightning looked at his crew chief. He was surprised to see tears in Doc's eyes. "Yeah," Lightning said, moderately abashed. "Just a little overwhelmed."

"That's understandable," Doc said, chuckling. "Are you too sore to get back to the trailer on your own?"

"No, I can get to the trailer," Lightning said, "but I need to go get my brace off the track. I lost it right after turn four, right?"

"It's no use going back to get that," Doc said. "You totaled it."

"It was totaled?" Lightning asked, shocked. He did not realize how great of an impact Chick had made with him.

"Yeah," Doc said. "I was ready to go attack Chick's crew chief."

Lightning laughed. "It wouldn't have done anything," he said, grinning triumphantly. "I won anyway."

"Yup, you did, Kiddo," Doc said, his voice still containing the same element of pride. "Now, let's get you back to the trailer so we can get to the airport in time for our flight. I don't think your fiancé would be happy with us if we missed it."

"No," Lightning agreed. "We would both be in the doghouse."

That night, both Doc and Lightning arrived in Los Angeles on time. Lightning exited the plane and drove to the entrance to the airport where he spotted Sally quickly. Sally saw him, squealed in delight, and drove up to him in the crowded lobby.

"Congratulations!" Sally said, hugging Lightning fiercely. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Thanks," Lightning said, grinning down at her. "I'm proud of myself."

Sally backed up a few feet. "But honestly, what were you thinking? You could have permanently crippled yourself out there!"

"Calm down!" Lightning said, grinning. "I'm fine. Sore, but fine."

"Good," Sally said. "You look exhausted. You should probably turn in for tonight."

"That's what I was planning to do," Lightning said. "Unless you had something else planned that is."

"I knew you would be tired," Sally said. "You have the rest of today and tomorrow to rest up, and then it's the day of the wedding. I already have everything organized."

"That sounds good," Lightning said. "Now, let's head back to the hotel."

"Not so fast, Kiddo," Doc said. "I want to get some x-rays of your wheel axle at the track here before you turn in. I think you might have put a new fracture in the wheel axle when you pulled that little stunt."

"Okay," Lightning said, shifting uncomfortably. "I think I may have put another one in it."

"I'll come with you," Sally said. "My parents are driving me insane back at the hotel."

"Are they staying at the hotel?" Lightning asked, driving out of the structure.

"Yeah," Sally said. "For convenience's sake. They only live about twenty minutes away, but it just works out better for them to stay here."

"Yeah," Lightning agreed. "Are my parents here yet?"

"Yeah, they were talking with my parents when I left," Sally replied.

Twenty minutes later, Doc was reading Lightning's x-rays.

"You put a new fracture in it," Doc said. "It's just a hairline fracture though, nothing too severe."

"Okay," Lightning said, nodding.

"I'm not going to put anything on it," Doc said. "But I expect you to be mature down in Mexico. No racing or training. And you won't be training for six weeks when you get back here."

"But Doc!" Lightning protested.

"No buts," Doc said. "That wheel axle hasn't had any time to heal and it needs some."

"Fine," Lightning said. Overall, he was too happy to argue.

The hotel was magnificent. It was obviously five stars. It had columns lining the front entry way and the lobby was immaculate. The front desk was plated with gold, and the floor was so clean, Lightning could see his reflection in it when he drove in.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a light blue Lamborghini was accosting Lightning.

"I'm so proud of you!" Skye McQueen raved. She engulfed her son in a huge hug.

Skye let go of Lightning and backed away, tears in her eyes. "Ew, you're filthy," she said, laughing slightly. She used her tire to rub some dirt off Lightning's cheek.

"Mom!" Lightning said. "Please!"

"Oh, okay," Skye said, laughing again. "I watched the race. You were amazing!"

"Thanks, Mom," Lightning said, smiling at her. He knew how painful it was for his mother to watch a race. She hated the whole sport of racing.

"Good job, Son," Lightning father said, beaming down at him.

"Thanks, Dad," Lightning said, grinning back at his father.

"You didn't get hurt out on the track, did you?" Skye asked, a dramatic expression on her delicate face.

"I fractured my wheel axle again," Lightning replied, "but it isn't anything too severe."

"Nothing too severe?" Mr. Carrera asked, driving up. He smiled at his future son-in-law. "Most cars would be in a cast and on crutches with a fractured wheel axle.""To tell you the truth, Sir," Lightning said. "Fractures don't seem to be that big of a deal anymore."

"Isn't your axle broken too?" Sally's mother, Mercedes, asked, driving up.

"I guess you could call it that," Lightning said, suppressing a yawn. "It's not exactly done healing yet."

"You look exhausted," Sally said. "I'll show you to your room so you can get some sleep."

"Well, I don't want to be antisocial," Lightning said to his parents and the Carreras, "but I'm absolutely exhausted. I hope you guys don't mind if I head up to bed."

"Not at all," Skye said.

"You did just drive five hundred miles at two hundred miles per hour," Chevy McQueen said.

Lightning laughed. "Yes Sir," he said. "I'll see you guys later."

Everyone said goodbye to Lightning. He and Sally went up the elevator to the third story where he and his groomsmen were staying. Sally stopped at room 323 and unlocked it.

"This is my room?" Lightning asked, driving into it. It was a nice room with a large cushiony bed in the floor, and a large plasma screen television.

"Yeah," Sally said, following Lightning in.

Lightning drove onto the cushioned pad on the floor and sighed.

"Care to join me?" Lightning asked, scooting over a little to make room for Sally.

"Maybe for a minute," Sally said. "All my old school friends are getting here in an hour, so I have a little time to spare."

"Good," Lightning said. "I'm glad I'm worth your time."

Sally laughed. "Of course you are," she said. "Did I mention how proud I am of you?"

"Maybe once," Lightning said, snuggling up against his fiancé.

Sally laughed. "Are you going to sleep until tomorrow or are you taking a nap and getting up again?"

"That depends on what time it is," Lightning yawned.

"It's eight," Sally replied.

"I'll get up at ten," Lightning replied, fatigue in his voice. "Just to socialize a little bit."

"Good," Sally said. "I'll come and get you at ten."

"Sounds good," Lightning said.

Sally drove off the bed and then up to Lightning.

"I love you," she said, kissing Lightning.

"I love you too," Lightning said groggily. He was asleep before Sally had the chance to drive out of the room.

Two hours later, Sally gently shook Lightning awake.

"Hey," she said, smiling at him.

"Hey," Lightning replied groggily. It felt as though he had not slept at all.

"Did you have a good nap?" Sally asked.

"Yeah," Lightning replied.

"Do you feel well-rested?" Sally asked.

"Maybe just rested," Lightning admitted. "Well-rested would be pushing it."

"Do you want to go back to sleep?" Sally asked.

"I'm okay," Lightning replied, yawning. He drove off the bed and stretched his wheel axle. Lightning grimaced at the sharp pain that shot through his injured axle.

"Are you okay?" Sally asked, concern in her voice.

"Yeah," Lightning said, gingerly putting weight on his injury. "I'm always stiff when I wake up."

"Okay," Sally said. She did not look one hundred percent reassured.

"I'm fine, really," Lightning said. "Did your friends get here?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah!" Sally said, her face lighting up. "They got here early. When I got downstairs they were driving into the lobby. They can't wait to meet you."

"Okay," Lightning said, fighting a yawn that was threatening to escape from his mouth. He remembered what him mom had said about him being filthy. "Let me take a quick shower."

"Okay," Sally said. "Make it fast, okay?"

"Okay," Lightning said. He drove into the bathroom and into the automatic car wash. He jets of warm water felt great against his titanium. the steam that rose from the hot water threatened to lull Lightning back to sleep. When the underside jets turned on, Lightning jumped uncomfortably. He groaned slightly as the water pelted his already incredibly sore wheel axle. This lasted for about two minutes, and when the dry cycle turned on, Lightning let out a sigh of relief. The dry cycle lasted two minutes, and Lightning drove out of the shower feeling clean, and other than his throbbing wheel axle, refreshed.

"Are you ready?" Sally asked Lightning when he was out of the bathroom.

"Yeah," Lightning replied. "Are they in the lobby?"

"Everybody moved to the dining hall," Sally replied.

"Okay," Lightning said, exiting the hotel room after Sally. He drove into the elevator and the door shut.

"Can you believe in two days we're going to be married?" Sally asked, leaning against Lightning.

"It's pretty hard to believe," Lightning agreed, smiling down at his fiancé.

The elevator doors opened and the couple drove out, Sally in the front. They passed through the eccentric lobby and into the dining hall, where a rather large group of people had gathered.

Lightning followed Sally to a group where about ten female cars were parked. They varied in color, size, and model.

"Girls," Sally said, driving up behind the group, "this is Lightning."

All the cars turned around.

"Lightning this is Ashley (a dark green Toyota Tundra), Vivienne (a yellow Audi), Sarah (a white Prius), Anna (a black BMW), Hannah (a dark red Honda Acura), Jill (a blue Mazda 3), Melissa (a light colored Altima), Whitney (a white Lexus SUV), and Anna Mauldin (a pale blue Infinity)," Sally said.

"Hey," Lightning said, smiling at all the girls.

Each of the girls smiled somewhat bashfully and greeted him.

"Good race today," said Vivienne.

"Yeah," Jill agreed. "You were really consistent, even with your injury."

"Thanks," Lightning said. "You seem to know a lot about racing," he added to Jill.

"You could say that," Jill said, surveying Lightning with her intense blue eyes.

Lightning sensed an aloof era surrounding Jill, as though she had a certain sense of independence.

For the next two hours, Lightning talked to and laughed with Sally's friends. They were all different; Ashley was probably the most reserved, but Whitney was also very quiet. Hannah and Anna were best friends; they talked and laughed together constantly. They were fun-loving and enjoyable to talk to. Melissa and Sarah were the individuals of the group. They had never met before, but they bonded quickly. Vivienne was by far the most social. She was the life of the party, and she had Lightning laughing constantly. Jill was still quiet, more observant than anything. Anna Mauldin was obviously Sally's best friend. They talked and laughed together, recollecting on how they used to play on Anna Mauldin's farm.

Lightning finished talking with Hannah and Anna and saw his parents talking across the room. Lightning was curious; his parents were talking in hushed tones away from the rest of the groups that had gathered. Lightning drove over to them.

"What's up?" Lightning asked, glancing between his mother and his father.

"Oh, nothing, Honey," Skye said in a falsely casual voice, not making eye contact with her son.

"I can tell you're lying," Lightning said bluntly. "What's wrong?"

"Dodger has gotten into trouble again," Chevy said.

"I thought he was in jail," Lightning said.

"We paid his bail," Chevy said heavily. "And we just received a phone call saying he had been arrested again."

"What did he do this time?" Lightning asked, his tank twisting uncomfortably.

"He was caught trafficking drugs," Skye said, her voice shaking slightly.

"Drugs?" Lightning asked, his tank lurching. He knew Dodger had serious problems, but drugs seemed fairly radical, even for him.

"Yes," Chevy replied "But your mom and I have some financial stuff to work out, so we're going to head to our room to do it. We'll see you tomorrow. Great job on your victory, Son."

"Thanks, Dad," Lightning said, attempting to smile despite the bed news he had just received. "Goodnight, Mom," he added, kissing his mom on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Hon," Skye said distractedly.

Once his parents pulled out of the dining hall, Lightning spotted Doc on the periphery of the room reading the newspaper. Lightning drove over to him.

"What's up, Kiddo?" Doc asked, looking up as Lightning approached him.

"Nothing much," Lightning said.

"You okay?" Doc asked. "I saw you over there talking with your parents. You didn't seem too happy."

"Dodger got arrested again," Lightning sighed.

"I thought he was already in jail," Doc said, looking confused.

"You and me both," Lightning said. "My parents paid his bail and he got out. Then he decided to take up the profession of drug-dealing, so he's back in jail again."

"I'm sorry, Rookie," Doc said.

"I'm sorry for my parents," Lightning said. "Dodger and I never had that great of a relationship."

"Yeah," Doc said. "Are you parents going to get him out again?"

"I have no clue," Lightning said, stifling a yawn. "That's what they were going to go talk about."

Doc nodded. "You need to get to bed," he said.

"I know," Lightning said. "I'm exhausted."

"Get to bed," Doc said. "You've got a long couple days ahead of you."

"I know," Lightning said. "Goodnight, Doc."

"Goodnight, Rookie," Doc said. "Great job today."

"Thanks, Doc," Lightning said, grinning at his trainer.

Lightning drove over to where Sally was parked, talking to her friends.

"Hey," Lightning said, pulling up to Sally.

"Hey," Sally said, smiling up at Lightning.

"I'm heading to bed," Lightning said. "I can hardly stay awake."

"You look exhausted," Sally said. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay," Lightning replied. He gave Sally a quick kiss, told her goodnight, and went up to bed.

The next day, Lightning woke up at noon. He got out of bed and groaned. His wheel axle was throbbing uncomfortably. Lightning drove gingerly down to the dining hall where he saw Sally eating lunch with her parents.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty," Sally said affectionately when Lightning drove up.

"Hey," Lightning said, yawning.

"Did you get enough sleep?" Mr. Carrera asked, smiling at his future son-in-law.

"Yes, Sir," Lightning said, smiling back at him. "I'm well-rested now."

"How's your wheel axle?" Sally asked. "You were favoring it when you drove in."

"It's okay," Lightning replied, shifting his weight off of his broken axle. "It's a little tender, but what can you expect? It endured a lot yesterday."

"Yeah," Sally agreed. "That's why you're going to take it easy today."

"Let me do what I need to so I can do my fair share," Lightning insisted.

"You've done your fair share," Sally said. "You've paid the bills for the next three years with your prize money from yesterday alone!"

Lightning laughed. "What do you have to do today?" Lightning asked.

"Not much. My plans for today are to have fun," Sally said.

"Okay," Lightning said. "That sounds good to me."

Sally laughed. "I'm going to go," she told her parents.

"Okay, Hon," Mrs. Carrera said. "We'll see you a little later."

Sally pulled away from her parents, Lightning right beside her. The couple settled at a table for two.

"Did you hear about my brother?" Lightning asked glumly.

"Yeah, Doc told me last night after you went to bed," Sally said. "I'm really sorry. You must be upset."

Lightning shrugged. "He was my role model," he said. "I could have ended up like him."

"You know that would not have happened," Sally said. "You're a smart car who makes good decisions."

"I do?" Lightning asked, raising an eyebrow and looking down at Sally.

Sally laughed. "Well, you do some of the time," she corrected herself.

The next morning, Lightning woke up with a sense of excitement. It was his wedding day. He drove out of his hotel room and was mauled by a group of his old friends.

Lightning grinned from side view mirror to side view mirror. His old friends Stuart, Eric, Chris, Preston, Bud, Alex, and Austin had arrived.

"Guys!" Lightning said. "You're here!"

"Yeah, we are!" Eric said. He was a small silver Camry.

"We're ready to have some fun!" Chris said.

"You're in the right place then," Lightning said, thankful his friends had arrived.

Six hours later, Lightning was admiring the paint job Ramone had given him. It was his Radiator Springs paint job, but it seemed a lot more special today. He loved the way the dark red paint reflected the light from its glossy surface.

"Thanks, Ramone," Lightning said, grinning.

"No problem, Man," Ramone said. "I've gotta get Sally's paint job done. I'll see you at the wedding."

"Sounds good," Lightning said.

At six-thirty, Lightning was standing at the altar waiting on Sally to come down the aisle. His groomsmen (Doc, Mater, Stuart, and Eric), escorted Sally's bridesmaids (Anna Mauldin, Anna, Hannah, and Jill), to the altar.

Suddenly, the organ started playing and the doors at the end of the hall opened. "Here Comes the Bride" started up and Sally and her father appeared in the doorway.

Sally looked gorgeous.

She was painted an extremely pale shade of blue to where she was almost a silvery white. White ribbons ran elegantly around her side view mirrors.

She slowly drove down the aisle with her father. Once they reached the altar, Mr. Carrera gave his daughter to be wed and sat down next to his wife, who was already sobbing.

The minister began the sermon. Lightning said his vows to Sally, and she returned them to him. The entire service blew past Lightning in a blur. Before he knew it, he was kissing Sally in front of all the wedding guests. He smiled down at his wife and started down the aisle, Sally at his side.

"I love you," Lightning whispered to Sally as they left the church.

"I love you too," Sally whispered back to him. Tears gathered in her eyes.

Thirty minutes later, the reception was in full swing. Everybody was having a great time. Lightning was dancing with Sally.

Doc stepped in and began dancing with Sally. Lightning drove to the side of the dance floor and took a sip of his drink.

"Congratulations, Bud!" Mater said, driving up.

"Thanks, Mater," Lightning said, smiling at his best friend.

"You're welcome," Mater said, grinning his buck-toothed grin.

Before Lightning knew it, it was two o'clock in the morning. All the guests were beginning to leave the reception and head back to the hotel. Lightning had had a grand time. He parked next to Sally and waved goodbye and thanked them for coming. Their flight for Mexico left out at nine, and they doubted their guests would be up at that time to say goodbye to them.

One week later, Lightning and Sally pulled back into Radiator Springs after an enchanting honeymoon. They had enjoyed a week of total relaxation with fun in the sun. Lightning had resisted the urge to train at a local track, mainly because Sally wouldn't allow him to leave the hotel room unless it was with her strictly to keep him from training.

"Home sweet home," Lightning sighed, pulling into the Cozy Cone's office.

"I know, right?" Sally asked. "I had fun down in Mexico, but this is so much better."

"I hear you," Lightning said, grinning and kissing his wife.

"And you know what the best part about it all is?" Sally asked.

"That we're finally married and we're spending the rest of our lives together?" Lightning guessed.

"Well, there's that," Sally said.

"What else is there?" Lightning asked.

Sally grinned. "We're having a baby!"

**A/N: Plot twist! Haha. Read and review please! I really hope you liked the ending!**** I had fun! See you around December!**


	11. Advertisement for New Story!

**Author's Note: Hey loyal readers! Long time no speak****haha****. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that if you're interested in the sequel to Distractions, you may want to visit my ****fanfiction**** profile…under the "To My Cars Readers" section it has some pretty interesting stuff you might be interested in, including the chance that I may post the story early…YOU depend on that. Until next time….**


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